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2003-02-27 Iraq

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Posted by Steve 2003-02-27 10:23 am|| || Front Page|| [5 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 IIUC, the SRG was already in Bagdad. The unit near Mosul was regular Republican Guard, who are nto allowed into Bagdad. Clearly they're in danger in the open, and Mosul with a largely Kurdish/Turkmen population is not ideal place for urban warfare. Where else is Saddam going to put them. Looks like a plan for pulling troops into the Sunni Arab heartland, and into cities, but not to make a stand in any one city. Of course Bagdad is the only city big enough to present a potential nightmare. OTOH he has been nervous about bringing any troops other than SRG into Bagdad. This indicates he is still not ready to take the leap and bring RG's into Bagdad.

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-02-27 10:48:03|| 2003-02-27 10:48:03|| Front Page Top

#2 From Reuters: Troops and equipment from an Iraqi Republican Guard division have begun moving south toward Baghdad from their base near Mosul in northern Iraq, U.S. defense officials said on Thursday."It started in the last couple of days and they are in the process of moving now," one of the officials, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters. "It is a heavy Republican Guard division," said another official, "but we don't know how much is being moved or why." Defense analysts estimate that six such divisions, depleted after the 1991 Gulf War, now include up to 8,000 troops each. Heavy divisions include tanks and artillery to support their ground troops, but it was not clear whether the division in question was classed as an armored or an infantry unit. The officials stressed that the units being moved were not part of Saddam's Special Republican Guard, an elite force of up to 15,000 troops. Most of them are stationed near Baghdad and are the backbone of a protective cordon for Iraq's president.The U.S. officials did not make clear how military intelligence had discovered the Iraqi movement, but said that large numbers of trucks had been seen moving troops south. The United States uses intelligence satellites, unmanned spy planes and other aircraft to watch over Iraq. "We don't know whether the units being moved will continue south to Baghdad or will go to Tikrit. They could stop somewhere in between," said one official.

Posted by Steve 2003-02-27 12:24:10|| 2003-02-27 12:24:10|| Front Page Top

#3 Tikrit is probably the only place where Saddam won't be attacked once the war starts... by his own people.
In Baghdad the Shiites might get him before the Americans do.

Posted by True German Ally 2003-02-27 16:31:30|| 2003-02-27 16:31:30|| Front Page Top

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