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2003-03-26 Iraq

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Posted by Bulldog 2003-03-26 03:53 pm|| || Front Page|| [2 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 now the Supreme Assembly says its disturbances and not quite an uprising. Al jazeera reporter inside Basra sees no uprising. OTOH UK forces, saw mortar fire from one part of city to another, and less targeting of UK forces as mortars fire inside city. Coalition spokespeople continue to be cautious.

Sounds like there have been people out on the streets in SOME parts of the city, with the Fedayeen responding - but no generalized citywide uprising yet. Unclear how it is turning out. Brit forces will fire on regime mortars - both cause this is a good opportunity to do so, and to support uprising. I assume there are coalition spec. forces inside the city, or at least intel assets, and that coalition knows considerably more about what is going on then they are saying. I assume that they are looking for right opportunity to go in - perhaps waiting for arrival of HMS (?) Sir Galahad, with food and water for inhabitants.

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-03-26 08:32:16|| 2003-03-26 08:32:16|| Front Page Top

#2 More from a BBC embedded:

"Southern Iraq :: Tim Franks :: 1325GMT

It's very difficult to pin down what is actually happening in Basra. We've been metaphorically pinning British military spokesmen against the wall all day and last night saying "Come on - what is the evidence of this uprising?"

All they have said to us is that they are absolutely 100 percent, copper-bottom certain that there was some sort of uprising. They don't know its scale, they don't know where exactly it happened but they are certain there was some sort of disturbance there.

Indeed since then it's been a very active morning - street to street fighting between British forces and Iraqi forces just to the west of Basra and in the outskirts of the city."

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-03-26 08:48:41|| 2003-03-26 08:48:41|| Front Page Top

#3 BBC and others now report a column of about 100 iraqi vehicles LEAVING Basra, headed SOUTH for Fao Peninsula. Either trying to recapture Fao (?!?!?) or trying to flee uprising (more likely, IMHO) In either case, they are being hit hard by coalition air.

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-03-26 12:06:41|| 2003-03-26 12:06:41|| Front Page Top

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