|
Army Repels Major Iraqi Counterattack
Iraqi forces staged a major counterattack Tuesday morning, sending buses and trucks full of fighters across the Tigris River in an attempt to overrun U.S. forces holding a strategic intersection on the western side of Baghdad. A U.S. Army commander says at least 50 Iraqis were killed during the battle, which apparently was Iraqi retaliation for a U.S. airstrike on a residential complex that U.S. intelligence indicated may have held senior Iraqi leadership, including Saddam Hussein and his sons. The fate of Saddam remains unclear. "You killed Sammy! Yo-o-o-o-u dirty ratz! I must have Dire Revenge®!" U.S. troops strafed the Iraqis from A-10 Warthog attack planes and opened up with artillery and mortar fire. Snipers reportedly wounded two American soldiers, one seriously. An Associated Press reporter embedded with a Marine unit in the eastern suburbs of Baghdad said Iraqi fighters are still taking occasional shots at the Marines. He said many of the fighters apparently have taken off their military uniforms to blend in with the civilian population, which is considered a war crime. The Marines are coming across enemy tanks and plenty of fighting holes — but no Iraqi troops in them. They've apparently abandoned the vehicles and their bunkers. I guess they took the bus over to fight the army... Civilians have approached the unit to offer food and cigarettes, but the Marines aren't allowing them to get close for fear of terrorist attacks. The Marines have been told to shoot at any vehicles approaching at a high rate of speed. Earlier, troops with the Army's 101st Airborne Division launched an attack on an eight-story former Republican Guard headquarters about half a mile from the airport. Two Iraqis were reported killed in the gun battle. There were no U.S. casualties. Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2003-04-08 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=12731 |