They came just hours after US troops took control of Baghdad's main airport after heavy fighting.

He was first seen making a speech telling Iraqi soldiers to hit back hard against coalition troops who are now surrounding Baghdad.

US officials are not sure when or where the speech was recorded. But they say he referred to a US Apache helicopter shot down on 24 March.

This might mean it was made after the air strike which was aimed at him on the first night of the war.

Rare

Saddam was then seen in fuzzy TV pictures being mobbed by cheering crowds of people while he visited bombed areas of Baghdad.

The TV station said it had been filmed on Friday.

But US officials say even before the war, it was very rare for Saddam to be seen out in the open because of security worries.

They say they cannot be sure it was actually him and not a lookalike.

If it is him, it will be the first time he's been seen in public since the war began on 20 March.

Earlier on Friday, Iraq's information minister went on TV to talk to reporters.