The recovery of a laptop computer in Iraq by American forces in February has helped in the capture of several associates of the Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Pentagon officials said Tuesday. The laptop was found in a vehicle used by Mr. Zarqawi as he fled to avoid imminent capture by American troops near the city of Ramadi on Feb. 20, the officials said. ABC News, which disclosed the existence of the laptop this week, reported that United States officials believed they had nearly caught Mr. Zarqawi there after receiving a tip. Using leads found on the computer, troops have taken into custody several suspected associates of Mr. Zarqawi in the past two months and have raided at least one location in Iraq where bomb-making materials were found, according to one Defense Department official. A senior Pentagon official said, "It's been very valuable information."Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed at a Pentagon briefing with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld on Tuesday that the United States believes it nearly captured Mr. Zarqawi in the raid. "We were close," General Myers said. He and Mr. Rumsfeld said the military has recently received better intelligence about Mr. Zarqawi, but neither would say whether it was coming from the laptop. "I think, in general, the intelligence is getting better. Having said that, we still don't have Zarqawi and other leaders that we are looking for as well," General Myers said. Computers belonging to Islamic militants have sometimes provided important windows into their operational planning, intelligence officials say. Pentagon officials said Mr. Zarqawi appeared to have eluded American troops positioned around Ramadi by sending a car carrying associates ahead of the truck he was in. When troops stopped the car, the trailing truck turned around and fled. When American soldiers eventually caught up with the vehicle, Mr. Zarqawi was gone, ABC News reported, in an account confirmed by several Defense Department officials. Pentagon officials said Tuesday that the laptop and more than $100,000 were found in the truck.