June 16 (Bloomberg) -- Fugitive terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's ``most trusted operations agent'' in Iraq was captured without incident two days ago in the northern city of Mosul, the U.S. military said in an e-mailed statement today.

The operative, identified as Muhammad Khalaf Shakar, and known as Abu Talha, was found after intelligence sources pinpointed his location in the city, according to the statement. Abu Talha is ``fully cooperating'' with U.S. and Iraqi officials, the statement said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Edward DeMarco at edemarco1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: June 16, 2005 10:14 EDT