BRIEFING: AT WAR WITH IRAQ
BY WORLD TRIBUNE.COM WITH MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
BY WORLD TRIBUNE.COM WITH MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Posted on 03/21/2003 1:54:11 PM PST by Happy2BMe
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BRIEFING: AT WAR WITH IRAQ
BY WORLD TRIBUNE.COM WITH MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE |
"The last thing a leader like Saddam Hussein wants to show is that he is incommunicado and no longer in control," an intelligence source said. "But that is exactly what has happened over the last 36 hours. He has not shown any signs of life." The ABC television network quoted U.S. intelligence sources as saying that the CIA has obtained evidence that Saddam was seen being taken out on a stretcher after his Baghdad home was struck by cruise missiles on Wednesday.
The CIA obtained evidence from eyewitnesses that Saddam was seen taken away from the house with an oxygen mask that covered his face. Since then, Saddam has not shown any signs of functioning. Earlier, Iraq insisted that Saddam is alive and well.
"The latest estimate I received before I left the Ministry of Defence this morning was that perhaps as many as 30 oil wells had been set on fire deliberately," British Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon said on Friday. [Later his office revised the figure to seven] "Put into context, that's perhaps not as bad as we feared, because there are many hundreds of oil wells in the southern part of Iraq."
On Friday, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported that U.S. forces captured Iraqi oil fields around the northern city of Kirkuk. Witnesses also reported bombings around the northern Iraqi oil city of Mosul. The Pentagon has also expressed concern that Iraq will open dams and flood areas between Baghdad and Al Kat. The dams regulate the flow of water from the Tigris River from upstream reservoirs. Iraq flooded the area to stop Iranian advances in the 1980-88 war. Pentagon concerns focus on Al Qadisiyah Dam and its Hadiyha Reservoir. "Iraq's strategy could include releasing a small amount of water from major dams and canals to interrupt maneuvering units," a Pentagon statement said on Friday. "The Hussein regime could incorporate the flooding into defensive preparations to slow the advance of coalition forces. This tactic could force coalition units or displaced persons through flooded areas."
In Jerusalem, hundreds of Palestinians marched from the Temple Mount calling on Iraq to fire chemical weapons toward Israel. In Tel Aviv, Israeli authorities held an exercise to test their response to an attack by a chemical weapon missile warhead.
In Jordan, authorities banned all unauthorized demonstrations and have refused to grant permits for political protests. There were no immediate reports of pro-Saddam violence in the Hashemite kingdom as officials warned of a harsh response to any unrest.
Another leading concern, officials said, is a flood of refugees from Iraq. Hundreds of thousands of people flooded the kingdom during the 1991 Gulf war. So far, about 15,000 people are reported to have crossed from Iran into Jordan.
Jordan's King Abdullah chaired a National Security Council meeting that was said to have focused on internal threats. The official news agency Petra said the council reviewed measures to deal with any emergency.
Under the administration package, Israel will be the biggest beneficiary of U.S. emergency aid connected to the war against Iraq. Officials said the Bush administration approved a package of $1 billion in grants and $9 billion in loan guarantees.
Egypt will also receive emergency aid for allowing use of its Suez Canal for allied warships moving equipment and weapons to the Persian Gulf. Officials said Egypt will receive $300 million in grants and $2 billion in loans. Jordan will also receive more than $1 billion in grants and loans connected to the war.
Lebanese Chief of Staff Gen. Michel Suleiman has ordered the establishment of an operations headquarters that would oversee all military and security contingencies. He also ordered the army to bolster its presence around strategic locations in Lebanon. Officials said the military chief ordered anti-aircraft forces to fire on any unauthorized foreign aircraft. They said the concern is over Israeli air attacks on Hizbullah and Syrian positions in Lebanon.
Lebanon will not use its military for operations along the southern border, officials said. They said the Iranian-backed Hizbullah movement, with an estimated 10,000 rockets in the south, has been authorized to help protect the country from Israeli forces.
There will be far, far less refugee problems now because:
#1: The reason(s) to flee (Saddam and his gang of thugs) has been removed.
#2: The United States of America is air dropping and trucking in tens of thousands of tons of food, clothing, and medical supplies.
Some of these people may immediately eat better than they have in years.
ALL of them will live better than they have in their entire lives.
Thank GOD (yes, Almighty God get the credit, honor and glory here - sorry agnostics) we once again have leaders who are godly men unwilling to cower in the face of hardship and threats (both foreign ~and~ domestic).
Eat your heart out Barbara, Bill, Hillary, Tom, Martin, Sandra . . et al.
So... is this a technical way of saying dead as a door nail?
In the local news, Bobby is said to no longer function after having 28 rounds of ammo pumped through him...
A U.S. Marine replaces the Iraqi flag at the entrance to Iraq (news - web sites)'s main port of Umm Qasr on March 21, 2003 with the Stars and Stripes and the flag of the Marine Corps. Marines briefly raised the U.S. flag over Umm Qasr after facing tougher than expected resistance in and around the southern Iraq port. Some time later, the flag was removed. No reason was given for the decision, but Washington has consistently stressed that invading U.S. forces want to liberate Iraq, not occupy it.
Perhaps, saddam insane is literally brain dead.
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