US soldiers inspect the crater left by the 'improvised explosive'

The Stop the War coalition said finding Saddam in a hole proved he was not masterminding Iraqi resistance.

Spokesman Andrew Burgin said the "We Got Him" line from Paul Bremer, Iraq's US administrator, was "very cowboy".

And New York-based Human Rights Watch said there should be no "political show trial" for Saddam.

Mr Burgin said violence and instability in Iraq was largely due to the "heavy-handed" nature of the British and American forces.

"This is a pathetic, isolated figure. He was apprehended in an underground cell that he himself had created with a single air vent, cut off largely from the outside world.

"He has been allegedly directing the operation of so-called resistance from what it now appears to be a hole in the ground. He obviously had been cut off since the fall of Baghdad.

"It's quite incredible that he was built up by the British and Americans as the person who was single-handedly masterminding the resistance.

"In large areas of Iraq, the heavy-handed nature of the British and American forces in the operations is what is fuelling the resistance, not some loyalty to Saddam.

"To some extent it shows how ludicrous the whole project was in the first place."

While people would welcome the capture of the Iraqi dictator, they would be "just as happy to see the end of occupation by foreign forces, and that is what is fuelling the resistance".

Pull-out call

Mr Burgin said it was ridiculous to assume that Saddam would have any specific knowledge of where supposed weapons of mass destruction might have been disposed of.

He said now Saddam was gone there was no reason for the US and UK not to pull out.

Human Rights Watch said Saddam's apprehension was a "welcome development", but stressed how important it was for the Iraqi people to have "ownership of his trial".

"But it's equally important that the trial is not be perceived as vengeful justice.

"For that reason, international jurists must be involved in the process.

"The Iraqi Governing Council should partner the United Nations to create an accountability process that works. There won't be a second chance to do this right."