The Red Crescent Society in Iraq says it buried Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay, Saturday in the deposed dictator's hometown of Tikrit.
The regional director of the Red Crescent in Tikrit, Tharwah Abed Bakr, says the bodies of Uday and Qusay were wrapped in Iraqi flags, and buried in the Awja cemetery after arriving from Baghdad in an ambulance.
There was a heavy U.S. military presence at the site, and journalists were prevented from photographing or filming the burial.
Earlier Saturday, the U.S. military handed the bodies over to the Iraqi Red Crescent for burial. They had been held at a U.S. base at Baghdad International Airport. The brothers were killed by American forces in a gun battle July 22 in the northern Iraqi town of Mosul.
Muslim custom stipulates that bodies must be buried as soon as possible after death. But U.S. officials say it was necessary to prove beyond doubt the identities of the men. They also say it was important to consult prominent Iraqis on the appropriate burial.
