Lieutenant General Abid Al-Hamid Mahmud al-Tikriti was an Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

i military

Military

A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...

 officer

Officer (armed forces)

An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...

 under Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

's deposed regime.

Mahmud began his military career as an non-commissioned officer

Non-commissioned officer

A non-commissioned officer , called a sub-officer in some countries, is a military officer who has not been given a commission...

 and rose through the ranks, becoming part of Hussein's personal bodyguard, and finally, his personal secretary.

A distant cousin of Hussein, observers regarded Mahmud as being Hussein's right hand man, in constant contact with him and acting as a gatekeeper to access to the leader: he was trusted. With Saddam's son Qusay Hussein

Qusay Hussein

Qusay Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti was the second son of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. He was appointed as his father's heir apparent in 2000.- Family :...

, he headed the Iraqi Special Security Organization

Iraqi Special Security Organization

The Iraqi Special Security Organization was the most powerful Iraqi security agency under President Saddam Hussein and was responsible for personal security of high-ranking government officials and presidential facilities. Its director, Hani Abd Al-Latif Tilfah Al-Tikriti was the seventh most...

.

He was designated ace of diamonds in the US administrations most-wanted Iraqi playing cards

Most-wanted Iraqi playing cards

In the 2003 invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition, the U.S. military developed a set of playing cards to help troops identify the most-wanted members of President Saddam Hussein's government, mostly high-ranking Baath Party members or members of the Revolutionary Command Council...

 and fourth on the most-wanted list after Saddam and his sons Uday

Uday Hussein

Uday Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti , was the eldest son of Saddam Hussein from his first wife, Sajida Talfah. He was the brother of Qusay Hussein. Uday was for several years seen as the heir apparent of his father; however, Uday lost his place in the line of succession due to his erratic behavior and...

 and Qusay

Qusay

Qusay is a masculine given name. It may refer to:-People:* Qusay Habib, Syrian footballer* Qusay Hussein, Iraqi businessman* Qusai ibn Kilab, the great-grandfather of Shaiba ibn Hashim...

.

He was captured in a joint raid by special operations forces

United States Special Operations Forces

United States Special Operations Forces under United States Special Operations Command are active and reserve component forces of U.S. Military...

 and the 1st Battalion

Battalion

A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...

, 22nd Infantry Regiment of 1st Brigade

Brigade

A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

, 4th Infantry Division, in June 2003. At the time it was recognized as the "greatest success" since the end of major hostilities, and a sign that Saddam Hussein might soon be found.

On April 29, 2008, he appeared before the Iraq Special Tribunal set up by the Iraq Interim Government and currently stands trial with six others including Tariq Aziz

Tariq Aziz

Tariq Aziz and Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq and a close advisor of former President Saddam Hussein. Their association began in the 1950s when both were activists for the then-banned Ba'ath Arab Socialist Party...

, Ali Hassan al-Majid

Ali Hassan al-Majid

Ali Hassan Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti , , was a Ba'athist Iraqi Defense Minister, Interior Minister, military commander and chief of the Iraqi Intelligence Service...

, Watban Ibrahim al-Hassan and Sabbawi Ibrahim al-Hassan.

On October 26, 2010, he was sentenced to death by the Iraqi High Tribunal.