The head of the snake? Gone.

From the AP: U.S. intelligence picked up early signs the Iraqi leadership might be incapacitated or out of communication with military field commanders who failed to muster a coordinated response after a dawn Thursday strike on a suspected Saddam Hussein hideout, government officials said.

This is in addition to reports that either Uday Hussein is suffering from a brain hemmorage after yesterday’s attacks, or that Saddam’s younger son Qussay is dead.

UPDATE: Matt Drudge is reporting that senior US military officials believe that Thursday’s bombing may have in fact killed Saddam.

UPDATE x2: Fox News is reporting that the White House believes otherwise. Voice comparison on known tapes of Saddam are being compared now. . .

UPDATE x3: Central Intelligence is saying that the video of Saddam Hussein is authentic, but’s when it was taped may be an issue for debate. Still developing.