Of course of the discussion here is based on the assumption that the US authorities would sooner that Saddam and his immediate entourage were captured alive for trial.

However this might not be the case. A public trial with Saddam telling all the murky secrets about how the US, including people currently involved in the administration such as Rumsfeld, were involved up to the hilt in all kinds of stuff they have managed to conceal - well that could be embarrassing.

The object of the exercise might in fact be to avoid that, by ensuring there is no such trial,