Severely edited.
In a sweeping advance, Army and Marine forces closed to within 20 miles of Baghdad from two directions today after crippling or destroying two divisions of the Republican Guard that had blocked their drive on the capital. - The Third Infantry Division battled forward today from a starting point north of Karbala, 45 miles from Baghdad, cutting through and routing disorganized Iraqi forces with no reports of American casualties. Their progress was never seriously challenged by the vaunted tank brigades of the Medina Division of the Republican Guard, which had been pounded by days of precision airstrikes and artillery barrages.
- Large numbers of Iraqi tanks have been destroyed by American air power. But it appeared possible — despite concerted allied efforts today to prevent this — that Saddam Hussein was collapsing his most powerful defenses into the capital, Baghdad, where superior American firepower and technology will almost certainly be less decisive. What proportion of the Republican Guard escaped to the capital is unclear. "It amazes me that you would not have your armored units meet us," said Maj. Michael J. Johnson, executive officer of the division's Third Battalion.
Sorry Mike, only a professional army would do that.
- The advance on Baghdad was two-pronged. As the Army advanced to the west, the First Marine Division — which had raced east on Tuesday to cross the Tigris River at Numaniya, 100 miles from Baghdad — formed up today as a 14,000-member force preparing to strike toward the capital from the southeast. The Nida Division of the Republican Guard was in its path.
- Allied aircraft are making bombing runs at the rate of 1,000 sorties a day, most of them aimed at Mr. Hussein's guard divisions.
- Baghdad shook under intermittent bombardment today. Iraqi state television said President Hussein had met with senior officials, including his two sons, Uday and Qusay.
Of course he did — they're all in that bunker together.
- Late today Bradley fighting vehicles of the Third Infantry Division opened fire on a industrial complex that one commander said was on the list of sites suspected by American intelligence of being a storage facility for chemical weapons.
- The American marines of Task Force Tarawa — whose task it has been to secure Nasiriya and its bridges across the Euphrates that sustain the main supply route to the armies to the north — said today that they had suffered 12 confirmed dead and more than 50 wounded in the battles for the town. Six or seven other marines are believed to be missing there.
The north is collapsing, the west is ours, the south is being rolled up, Basra is about to fall, RG units are being chewed up and we're at the suburbs of Baghdad. Wonder who has the momentum? |