BAGHDAD, Iraq March 22 —
Strong explosions shook the Iraqi capital after sunset Saturday,
the latest in the daily dose of aerial bombardment by U.S.-led
forces. The Iraqi regime asserted battle successes and maintained
Saddam Hussein and his sons had "the aggression" in hand.
Thunderous blasts struck Baghdad throughout Saturday, sending
towering columns of smoke into the air. Warplanes could be heard
overhead for a second straight day, but the targets were
unclear.
About 20 huge columns of smoke were visible on the southern edge
of the city. Arab television stations said these were set by the
Iraqis to confuse attacking planes and mask targets.
Iraqi state television in an effort to show that the regime is
firmly in control showed what it said was footage of Saddam chairing
meetings Saturday with senior government ministers and with his son
Qusai.
The report said the meetings dealt with "the aggression." The
report said Saddam and the others reviewed the situation in Umm
Qasr, al-Rumeila, al-Faw and Nasiriyah places where U.S.-led
coalition troops have battled Iraqi troops.
"They expressed their satisfaction with the heroic stance of the
armed forces," the TV report said.
The Iraqi military spokesman appeared on TV to read a communique
on the day's fighting. He maintained Iraqi air defenses shot down 21
cruise missiles on Saturday.
The communique said Saddam's Fedayeen, a militia led by Saddam's
son Odai, carried out several combat missions, destroying one tank
and injuring several coalition troops.
The TV report did not mention two days of fierce bombardments on
Baghdad that destroyed presidential palaces, government offices and
military headquarters.
Earlier Saturday, Iraqis were back in the streets in greater
numbers than they had been since the start of the U.S.-led war.
Small shops and restaurants reopened. Workmen swept up glass.
But by early evening, there were few cars or pedestrians, and
black smoke had drifted toward the heart of the city.
Elsewhere, U.S. aircraft bombed Iraqi tanks holding bridges near
Basra, the country's second-largest city. In northern Iraq, air
strikes and anti-aircraft fire were reported late Saturday in the
area of Mosul, a strategic oil site.
Also Saturday, Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf
addressed the Iraqi people, claiming that the government had
repulsed the U.S.-British attacks, destroying five tanks in the
process. He also said captives taken by coalition troops were
civilians, not Iraqi soldiers.
"Baghdad will remain with its head held high," Al-Sahhaf said.
"The Baghdad of Saddam will remain defiant."
Al-Sahhaf said 19 missiles had been fired on a small area of
Baghdad, injuring more than 200, mostly civilians.
However, the International Committee of the Red Cross said
Saturday that at least 100 people were injured in the overnight
airstrikes on Baghdad. The ICRC said earlier that one person died
and 14 were wounded on the first day of the war.
Florian Westphal, an ICRC spokesman in Geneva, said ICRC staff
visited a Baghdad hospital Saturday and counted around 100
wounded.
"To the best of our knowledge, these were the wounded from last
night," he said. "We've been touring these places following the
start of the attacks."
Saturday dawned with an enormous blast at first light, the first
in Baghdad since an attack filled the sky with fireballs Friday
night, illuminating the city of 5 million.
The air barrage came with U.S. ground troops headed toward
Baghdad, and with Saddam and his regime fighting to demonstrate
their command despite reports of surrendering Iraqi troops and the
loss of strategic sites.
Despite the apparent setbacks, Saddam's regime was taking a hard
line denying military setbacks and verbally attacking its enemies in
a show of public resolve. Al-Sahhaf lashed out at the allies early
Saturday.
"They are a gang of war criminals ... international bastards," he
said. "They lie day and night. They are not human."
photo credit
and caption:
Smoke rises from the periphery
of Baghdad Saturday, March 22, 2003. At least a dozen huge
columns of smoke could be seen above the southern horizon of
Baghdad. Sporadic explosions were heard in the capital
Saturday. (AP Photo/Jerome
Delay)
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