BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The intelligence operation that took out terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has triggered dozens of raids and arrests by U.S. troops in Iraq.

Maj. Gen. Bill Caldwell said one unidentified militant targeted by troops has been killed in the latest raids and at least 25 others have been captured.

Caldwell said more than a dozen simultaneous searches were carried out around the al-Qaida-in-Iraq safe house after the militant leader died. He said the intelligence gathered there led to other searches, including one where photos show small arms, ammunition and other items hidden beneath the floor of a building near Baghdad.

Caldwell also said that troops picked up things like memory sticks and hard drives that will help dismantle al-Zarqawi's group and target the source of his weapons and financing.

Earlier Friday, Caldwell told reporters that al-Zarqawi was still alive when Iraqi police arrived at a site that was bombed by U.S. forces.

Caldwell, briefing military reporters at the Pentagon from his post in Baghdad, said he learned that al-Zarqawi was alive after the general was briefed on the military operation that netted al-Zarqawi and several others.

"He mumbled something but it was indistinguishable and it was very short," Caldwell said.

Caldwell said that al-Zarqawi made an attempt to turn away from the stretcher on which he had been placed, the soldiers secured him to the stretcher and then he died shortly after from the bombing wounds. Caldwell said he was still alive when U.S. forces arrived on the scene.

"He died almost immediately thereafter from the wounds he'd received from this airstrike," Caldwell said.

"We did in fact see him alive," Caldwell said. "There was some sort of movement he had on the stretcher and he did die a short time later. There was confirmation from the Iraqi police that he was found alive."

Caldwell said it was unclear whether al-Zarqawi was trying to get away as he writhed around on his stretcher.

When asked if al-Zarqawi had been shot, Caldwell said he had no information that the terror leader had gunshot wounds.

Caldwell said that the photos of the deceased al-Zarqawi were not digitally enhanced before being released to the public, but that the dead man's face was cleaned up in order to remove blood and debris before the photos were taken.

Revising what military officials said Thursday, Caldwell said it now appears there was no child among those killed in the bombing, as was originally reported. He cautioned that some facts were still being sorted out. He said three women and three men, including al-Zarqawi, were killed.

Al-Zarqawi, whose bloody campaign of beheadings and suicide bombings made him the most-wanted terrorist in Iraq, was killed when U.S. warplanes dropped 500-pound bombs on his isolated safe house, officials said Thursday. His death was a long-sought victory in the war in Iraq.

The FBI is performing DNA analysis on the remains of al- Zarqawi and his associates.

Samples from the bodies have been delivered to the FBI crime laboratory in Quantico, Va. The samples were flown on military aircraft to the Washington-area facility.

An FBI spokesman now said the samples will be compared with evidence collected from other locations. The FBI had said earlier that the sample would be compared with a different DNA sample from al-Zarqawi for comparison. The results are expected in three days.

Officials said al-Zarqawi's body has already been fingerprinted to confirm it is that of the terrorist leader.

Three-Year-Search Ends With Two 500-Pound Bombs

After a three-year manhunt it finally came down to a little inside help, a fair bit of intelligence work -- and a couple of detoured fighter jets.

That's how the search wrapped up for al-Zarqawi.

Tips from all sorts of places apparently helped authorities find and kill the leader of al-Qaida-in-Iraq.

The country's prime minister credits residents near the home where two massive American bombs wiped out al-Zarqawi and five others.

U.S. military officials said with help from an al-Zarqawi insider, they identified and started tracking his spiritual leader. That led them to a modest home northeast of Baghdad, where the two men hooked up Thursday.

Seizing the window of opportunity, officials said two F-16s were diverted from another mission and sent to drop a pair of 500-pound bombs on the house. They killed both men, as well as four other people.

An official in Jordan said that country also gave the U.S. information to track Zarqawi -- who claimed responsibility for the hotel bombings that killed 60 in Iraq's neighbor.

While Zarqawi's people confirmed his death, U.S. officials said a DNA test should make it positive in days.

Iraq's prime minister said the $25 million bounty on al-Zarqawi's head will be paid.

Nouri al-Maliki declared to al-Arabiya TV, "We will meet our promise."

The U.S. had offered the payout for information leading to the death or capture of the militant leader.

The U.S. also offers a $25 million bounty for Osama bin Laden.

Taliban Leader Mourns al-Zarqawi

A message supposedly from the supreme leader of the Taliban mourns Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

The written statement claims to come from Mullah Omar, who disappeared along with Osama bin Laden when the U.S. invaded Afghanistan in late 2001. It said Omar is deeply saddened "over the martyrdom" of the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq.

It added that the death will not stop the insurgency in Iraq, calling it "the people's resistance" where every youth can grow up to become an al-Zarqawi.

There's no way to confirm the authenticity of the statement. It was e-mailed to an Associated Press reporter in Pakistan by a spokesman for the Taliban.

Egyptian May Succeed Al-Zarqawi

Who will take over for al-Zarqawi remains to be seen, since many of his deputies have been killed of late. And an American defense official says that while retaliation can't be ruled out, there's no intelligence indicating anything is planned.

While some analysts speculate on who'll succeed al-Zarqawi in Iraq, others said the real question is whether a new leader would change tactics.

Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, chief U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said Egyptian-born Abu al-Masri is the "most logical" successor. He's thought to have trained in Afghanistan before going to Baghdad with the mission of creating an al-Qaida cell.

Some speculate al-Zarqawi's spiritual adviser was not killed with his boss, as reported. Someone with the same name, Abu Abdul-Rahman al-Iraqi, posted an al-Qaida statement on the Internet. If it's the same al-Iraqi, he could be the new leader.

One analyst said al-Zarqawi had lost credibility within the insurgency by urging Sunnis to attack Shiites. A successor could take a different tack.

Anti-terror specialist Anthony Cordesman is among experts who believe their could be a surge in retaliatory attacks. Cordesman, with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said potential targets could include religious shrines.

Officials: Bin Laden Tougher Target Than Al-Zarqawi

Experts said even though the U.S. military killed Iraq's most-wanted terrorist, finding Osama bin Laden will be harder to do.

For one thing, they said, the 9/11 mastermind avoids satellite phones and the Internet. And he may be hiding in rugged, remote terrain, protected by loyal tribesmen along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

A retired Pakistan army general said bin Laden isn't involved in day-to-day operations and he "enjoys the support of much more loyal people" than al-Zarqawi did.

A senior Pakistani security official said Pakistani forces and American-led coalition forces in Afghanistan are trying to get closer to bin Laden. But he said so far they "don't have any clue on his whereabouts."