Tikrit Capture a Last Symbol

New York Times ^ | April 12, 2003 | MICHAEL R. GORDAN

[Dog Gone]

INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, near Baghdad, Iraq, April 12 — The goal of the American force that is advancing on Tikrit is to seal the demise of the mortally wounded government of Saddam Hussein.

The Army and Marine assault on Baghdad has dealt a devastating blow to Mr. Hussein's government and given the Americans control of the vital, if still lawless, capital.

Now, American commanders are trying to eliminate several major pockets of Iraqi military resistance. The capture of Tikrit is not the only objective of the multipronged American offensive that was set in motion today and could represent the final phase of the war.

But it is the most important since it would eliminate the last symbol of Mr. Hussein's rule.

As the hometown of Mr. Hussein, Tikrit has long been a power base for the Iraqi government. Its population is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim, and is far smaller than that of Baghdad, which has at least 4.5 million people. The Sunni minority has long ruled the country's Shiite majority.

It has been less well-defended than the Iraqi capital, which was initially protected by some six Republican Guard divisions. The Republican Guard forces that guard Tikrit have been repeatedly bombed. Elements of the First Marine Division have been assigned to take the town in the only way that guarantees control: the deployment of boots on the ground.

Because of its central role for the Iraqi government, there may be determined Iraqi resistance in Tikrit, but American intelligence officers do not know just what to expect. Tough resistance would be more likely if the city is defended by paramilitary groups and not just Iraqi military forces.

Tikrit is not the only objective of today's offensive. Marines also moved toward Baqubah, a town northeast of Baghdad. The town had been defended by troops from the Nida Republican Guard division and there have been concerns that some Iraqi forces fled there after the fall of Baghdad.

At the same time, American forces are trying to eliminate two other major pockets of resistance. Iraq's 12th Armored Brigade has been a focus of concern in recent days. It is stationed at Ramadi, where it guarded the western approaches to Baghdad. American helicopter gunships were poised to attack that brigade.

But that assault was suspended on Friday night when American commanders received reports that the brigade, which has been battered by repeated airstrikes and has less than two dozen tanks remaining, might surrender.

Progress on these diverse fronts will effectively expand the zone of American control to the north and west of Baghdad and eliminate a pocket of resistance to the east. It follows the collapse of the Iraqi defense of Kirkuk and Mosul farther north. The capture of those northern cities still needs to be consolidated by the arrival of more American troops — possibly those of the Fourth Infantry Division, which is getting ready for operations in Iraq.

One remaining objective is Kut, a town to the southeast of Baghdad and a former hotbed of resistance. There have reports in recent days that several hundred paramilitary troops were holed up in the town. But local leaders say that that the paramilitary units are no longer in the city and that they are willing to allow American marines into it. American military officials are working to clarity the status of the city.

In any case, it seemed likely to be under American control soon. That would mean that virtually all of Iraq's cities will be out of the control of Mr. Hussein or his major subordinates.

None of this means that the fighting will suddenly grind to a halt. American officials still have to contend with snipers, suicide bombers and ambushes by small numbers of Iraqi paramilitary troops and Islamic militants from Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Sudan, who appear to have come to Iraq to carry on their own holy war.

Indeed, as the Americans and British achieve success on the conventional battlefield they are likely to be challenged by an enemy that continues to use "asymmetrical warfare," as such low-tech but deadly tactics are known.

A fresh indication of such tactics and the determination of irregular forces to contest the American efforts to stabilize and rebuild Iraq came in recent days when fedayeen fighters entered Saddam City, a Shiite neighborhood in Baghdad, and lobbed shells at American marines. The goal, American officials said, was to provoke the Marines to fire back at the neighborhood, a move that would cause civilian casualties. But the marines figured out the tactic and did not retaliate.

Lt. Gen. David McKiernan, the allied land war commander, has set up a command post here to supervise the reconstruction of Iraq. The goal is to stabilize the country to the point that nongovernmental organizations and foreign governments will feel safe enough to dispense aid and embark on reconstruction projects.

From the start, General McKiernan has spoken of a "blurred transition" to the rebuilding phase. Because of the complexity of the military's mission and the size of Iraq, combat operations might be continuing in one part of the country even as reconstruction continues in another. Ultimately, the ability to proceed with the reconstruction of Iraq will depend on the ability of the Americans and the British to put an end to conventional threats and to contain and defuse unconventional forces.

In the American calculation, taking Tikrit will contribute to that goal by eliminating the last vestiges of Mr. Hussein's government and demonstrating to still-edgy Iraqis that there is no going back to the past.

[ambrose]

notice that the NY Times doesn't call it "Baghdad International Airport"...

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[Dog Gone]

You're right. I hadn't noticed that. I guess the fact that they're not referring to it as Saddam International Airport can be viewed as progress.