US misses Saddam security chief

US soldiers said they missed catching Saddam Hussein’s security chief — and possibly the former Iraqi president himself — by a mere 24 hours early yesterday.

Meanwhile, a US Marine was killed in a grenade attack south of Baghdad.

Troops stormed three farms in Tikrit, Saddam’s hometown, in simultaneous pre-dawn raids after receiving a tip that Saddam’s new security chief was staying at one of the farm houses, said Lt Col Steve Russell, who led the operation by the of the 4th Infantry.