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| Iraq |
| Coalition prepares new offensive against Basra |
| 2003-03-31 |
| Coalition forces are making preparations to launch a new offensive against Basra with bombing southern Iraq and widespread helicopter operations in the area. According to reports released at `No Man's Land', Basra was subject to several air raids and helicopter operations on Sunday. The helicopters are hovering to take troops and armaments to Basra battlefield from south-west and south-east parts of the country. Basra has been subject to heavy air raids, cruise missile bombardment and artillery shelling for the past week destroying the city's infrastructure, cutting off water and electricity supplies. The Saturday bombardment ruined the city's food warehouse, a fuel storage and some urban structures. A number of Basra citizens managed to leave the war-stricken city after several days of uninterrupted bombardment and cross through the American and British forces, who are stationed around the city. According to the people leaving Basra, the city is completely entrenched and the explosive traps laid on the streets and bridges make the traffic quite difficult, if not impossible. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #2 "five senior Iraqi officers .... but none of them was a general" Iraqi equivalent of full bird colonels? |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2003-03-31 13:21:32 |
| #1 Update from News.com.au: BRITISH commandos captured five senior Iraqi officers in a clash with Iraqi paramilitaries near Basra yesterday but none of them was a general as had been initially reported, a British military spokeswoman said today. "We have got five senior Iraqi officers but none of them is a general," Major Catherine Convery said at the US-British forward command headquarters at As-Saliyah, from which the war on Iraq is directed. They were trying to slip out of Basra to the west and got caught. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-03-31 10:31:23 |