Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Operations
Deployments
US Policy
United Nations
Foreign Reactions
News Reports

Current Operations

• Transcript: DoD News Briefing - ASD PA Clarke and Maj. Gen. McChrystal 26 Mar 2003 -- "This is the sixth day of the coalition campaign to end the Iraqi regime, destroy their weapons of mass destruction, and free the Iraqi people from decades of torture and oppression. We are making good progress on the land, the sea, and in the air with the invaluable help of many coalition allies. As President Bush said this morning in Tampa, the world is witnessing the skill and humanity of the American military."
• TRANSCRIPT FOR 3/26 CENTCOM BRIEFING CENTCOM 26 Mar 2003 -- "Let me begin by saying the coalition continues Operation Iraqi Freedom on our sixth day since the coalition ground forces began their attack into Iraq. We remain on plan, and we're confident that we will accomplish our objectives."
• Statement to the House of Commons - Secretary of State for Defence UK Ministry of Defence 26 Mar 2003 -- "With permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to make a further statement about military action in Iraq. Coalition forces have made significant progress since my statement to the House last Friday."
• Transcript: Media Briefing Australia's contribution to Global Operation Australian Department of Defence 26 Mar 2003 -- "As you are probably aware from media reporting, there have been rather severe weather conditions in the area of operations. This includes fierce sandstorms, which have significantly reduced visibility and is making life pretty uncomfortable - particularly for those operating on the ground."

• IRAQ WRAP 3RD UPDATE VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- U-S led coalition forces in Iraq have opened a northern front of attack, parachuting into northern Iraq and seizing a key airfield in the Kurdish zone, said to be about 50 kilometers south of the Turkish border. The northern invasion came on another night of bombing in Baghdad. But Corespondent Nick Simeone reports there's still no indication when coalition ground troops poised on the outskirts of the city plan to move on the Iraqi capital.
• 3rd ID 'Raiders' advance far into Iraq Army News 26 Mar 2003 -- Armored columns of the 3rd Infantry Division roared hundreds of kilometers toward Baghdad during the first four days of "Operation Iraqi Freedom," securing an airfield at Jalibah, exchanging fire outside Al Samawa, and capturing about 250 enemy soldiers.
• U.S., Coalition Troop Strength in Iraq Nears 300,000 Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- There are now 250,000 U.S. ground forces inside Iraq, along with 40,000 coalition forces, Army Major General Stanley McChrystal, vice director for operations at Joint Staff, said at a Pentagon briefing March 26. Those forces have advanced more than 220 miles in six days in spite of difficult weather, he said.
• U.S. Forces Find 3,000 Chemical Suits at Iraqi Hospital Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- U.S. forces have found 3,000 Iraqi chemical protective suits at an An Nasiriyah hospital, which gives war planners an indication that Saddam Hussein's regime is preparing to use banned chemical weapons against coalition forces, a U.S. Central Command briefing officer said March 26.
• PENTAGON / AIRDROP UPDATE VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- The U-S led coalition has begun to open a northern front in Iraq -- airdropping troops into Kurdish-held territory.
• PENTAGON: PRESSURING BAGHDAD VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- One week into Operation Iraqi Freedom, the U-S led coalition opened its long-awaited northern front, parachuting one thousand soldiers into Kurdish-held territory. But the focus of allied military attention remains Baghdad and what one senior defense official calls "cutting off the head of the snake."
• IRAQ / WAR / AID VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- The U-S Agency for International Development is preparing to carry out what it calls an unprecedented program of humanitarian aid and reconstruction in Iraq. The U-S agency's head says the effort includes help from at least six other countries.
• PENTAGON/ATTACK VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Senior Pentagon officials say Iraqi authorities may be responsible for the explosions in a Baghdad residential area that killed 15 civilians. Word comes as coalition forces press their attack on Iraqi forces south of the capital.
• Coalition Progress 'Phenomenal,' DoD Officials Say AFPS 26 Mar 2003 -- Six days into the campaign against Iraq and the coalition progress has been "phenomenal," Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke said today.
• Airman dies of injuries in Kuwait AFPN 26 Mar 2003 -- An Idaho Air National Guardsman has died of injuries received from a grenade attack on his tent in Kuwait on March 22.
• Roche, Jumper give Senate war update AFPN 26 Mar 2003 -- The U.S.-led "coalition of the willing" has achieved total air dominance in the skies over Iraq, Air Force leaders told members of the Senate on March 26.
• Baghdad marketplace not a target AFPN 26 Mar 2003 -- A Baghdad marketplace reportedly rocked by an explosion killing 14 people was not targeted by coalition forces, Defense Department officials said March 26 during a Pentagon press briefing.
• Air Force, Army leaders examine air-ground ops AFPN 26 Mar 2003 -- The Air Force and Army chiefs of staff are leading a focused effort to examine air-ground operations in order to improve the two services' combat capability.
• San Jacinto TLAM Crew on Point for the Nation Navy NewStand 26 Mar 2003 -- In the early morning hours of March 20, dictator Sadam Hussein's seat of power, Baghdad, came under fire.
• Constellation Helicopter Squadrons Play Vital Role Navy NewStand 26 Mar 2003 -- Crews from Helicopter Anti-Submarine Warfare Squadron (HS) 2 and Helicopter Anti-Submarine Warfare Squadron Light (HSL) 47, both embarked aboard USS Constellation (CV 64), recently aided in the seizure of two Iraqi offshore oil terminals, averting potential environmental disaster.
• HS-7: Releasing HST's Guard Dogs Navy NewStand 26 Mar 2003 -- From late night March 21 through the next day, USS Harry S. Truman's (CVN 75) flight deck was inundated with the unceasing roar of jet engines as the ship and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 3 began combat operations into Iraq.
• Navy Hospital Ship Cares for All Patients Navy NewStand 26 Mar 2003 -- USNS Comfort's (T-AH 20) medical staff has treated nearly 20 patients wounded in combat or accidents related to supporting roles for Operation Iraqi Freedom over the past week.
• Iraq: Explosions Rock Baghdad As U.S.-Led Forces Continue Toward Capital RFE/L 26 Mar 2003 -- The United States military has reported killing large numbers of Iraqi forces near the central Iraqi city of Najaf, Baghdad has meanwhile come under new bombardment, and there are reports of an uprising in Basra as the U.S.-led attack on Iraq entered its seventh day.
• Iraq: Latest Baghdad Air Strikes Target Iraqi TV RFE/L 26 Mar 2003 -- The Iraqi capital Baghdad came under attack once again this morning from coalition air strikes.
• Iraq: Air Strike Kills At Least 12 In Residential Area RFE/L 26 Mar 2003 -- Iraqi officials say an air strike today in a residential area of Baghdad killed at least 12 people. Correspondents at the scene and witnesses report that 14 or 15 people were killed in two explosions.
• Iraq: Bomb Kills 14 in Baghdad RFE/L 26 Mar 2003 -- On the seventh day of the war in Iraq, 14 civilians were reported killed and 30 others injured in Baghdad in what Iraqi officials say was a U.S.-led air strike that hit a residential neighborhood.
• PENTAGON / CHEMICAL WEAPONS VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- A U-S general says the discovery of thousands of chemical weapons suits in an Iraqi hospital is reinforcing concerns that Saddam Hussein's military is prepared to use weapons of mass destruction.
• IRAQ / SHIELDS VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Military officials with the coalition fighting to disarm and depose the Iraqi government are accusing Iraq of placing military equipment near historical and cultural sites in the country. A senior official made the charge before reporters.
• IRAQ / GUERRILLA WARFARE VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Coalition forces in southern and central Iraq are continuing to fight off attacks and ambushes by small groups of Iraqi forces. As U-S forces approach populated areas near Baghdad, there is growing concern about Iraqi paramilitary fighters mixing with civilians.
• PENTAGON / BAGHDAD VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Pentagon officials are denying that they targeted a residential neighborhood in Baghdad where Iraqi officials say at least 14 people were killed by a U-S missile. However, U-S military officials say they did target Iraqi missiles and launchers in another part of the city.
• IRAQ WRAP VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Fighting in Iraq continues in several locations with U-S warplanes again hitting Baghdad and American ground troops involved in a fierce engagement in central Iraq.
• IRAQ/UMM QASR VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Senior Iraqi officials are denying coalition claims that U-S and British forces are in control of a key port city in southern Iraq.
• IRAQ WRAP VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Fighting in Iraq continued in several locations Wednesday as U-S warplanes again hit Baghdad and American ground troops fought a fierce engagement in central Iraq.
• IRAQ / BRIEFING VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Coalition forces have found arms and three-thousand chemical suits at a hospital used as a paramilitary headquarters near the Iraqi town of Nasiriyah. The report is raising concerns at coalition headquarters that Iraq may be planning to use chemical weapons as it seeks to stop an allied advance toward Baghdad.
• General: Iraqi Regime's Showing Its 'True Colors' AFPS 26 Mar 2003 -- The Iraqi regime has "shown its true colors" in recent days with brutality and disregard for international rules of warfare, a U.S. Central Command official said today.
• COALITION LEAFLETS EMPHASIZE INTENTION TO AVOID LANDMARKS CENTCOM 26 Mar 2003 -- Coalition aircrews dropped approximately 600,000 informational leaflets into Iraq throughout the day Tuesday providing a variety of messages, including one that emphasized that the Coalition does not wish to harm Iraqi landmarks. The leaflet also stated that the Coalition will destroy "any viable military target."
• COALITION FORCES STRIKE MISSILE LAUNCHERS IN BAGHDAD; CIVILIAN DAMAGE POSSIBLE CENTCOM 26 Mar 2003 -- Coalition aircraft used precision-guided weapons to target nine Iraqi surface-to-surface missiles and launchers in Baghdad at approximately 3 a.m. EST.
• Iraqi Mine Smugglers Intercepted by Coalition Forces Navy NewStand 26 Mar 2003 -- U.S. led coalition forces successfully intercepted and boarded four Iraqi vessels containing nearly 100 mines in the Khor Abd Allah waterway recently. The vessels also carried nearly 50 passengers.
• Full Speed Ahead into Operation Iraqi Freedom Navy NewStand 26 Mar 2003 -- With the ongoing war in Iraq, it's all business aboard USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75).
• HST Strikes In Operation Iraqi Freedom Navy NewStand 26 Mar 2003 -- The attitude was all business in Hangar Bay One aboard USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) March 21 as the Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) that were to be released over Iraq in the early morning hours were taken to the flight deck to be loaded on aircraft.
• U-S / Iraq VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- As the U-S led military campaign toward Baghdad continues, U-S Marines are encountering some resistance from Iraqi fighters, after crossing the Euphrates River
• IRAQ / BASRA VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- British forces in southern Iraq say they believe there has been a popular uprising against the Iraqi leadership in Basra, the country's second biggest city. British spokesmen say Iraqi troops fired mortars at civilians in Basra and that British troops shelled Iraqi positions in an effort to help the apparent uprising.
• IRAQ / WRAP VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Coalition officials say Iraqi civilians appear to have risen up against Iraqi troops in the southern city of Basra. The development comes amid reports of a major battle near the central Iraqi city of Najaf in which hundreds of Iraqi troops have reportedly been killed.
• BRITAIN / BASRA VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Britain's defense secretary says Iraqi militiamen loyal to President Saddam Hussein have been attacking civilians to put down an uprising in the southern city of Basra.
• II MEF grunts protect I MEF command USMC News 26 Mar 2003 -- The infantrymen with 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment are getting use to some new circumstances.
• I MEF establishes forward command post in Iraq USMC News 26 Mar 2003 -- First Marine Expeditionary Force's headquarters element and other command and control assets convoyed across the Kuwait-Iraq border and headed north March 22.

Deployments

US Policy

• President Rallies Troops at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa White House 26 Mar 2003 -- Our military is making good progress in Iraq; yet this war is far from over. As they approach Baghdad, our fighting units are facing the most desperate elements of a doomed regime. We cannot know the duration of this war, but we are prepared for the battle ahead. We cannot predict the final day of the Iraqi regime, but I can assure you, and I assure the long-suffering people of Iraq, there will be a day of reckoning for the Iraqi regime, and that day is drawing near.

• No Easy Peace: Rising to the Challenge Joe Lieberman for President 2004 26 Feb 2003 -- Remarks of Senator Joe Lieberman to the Council on Foreign Relations
• White House Press Gaggle White House 26 Mar 2003
• Bush: 'Day of Reckoning Nears' for Iraq's 'Band of War Criminals' AFPS 26 Mar 2003 -- Dictator Saddam Hussein's regime is "evil at its heart," President Bush declared today, as he pointed to several alleged instances of Iraqi disregard for internationally recognized rules of war.
• Natsios Says Food For Southern Iraq Prepositioned in the Region Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- To meet the potential humanitarian emergencies in southern Iraq, the United States has pre-positioned food, equipment and personnel in nearby countries, waiting only for the area to be declared safe before commencing relief activities, said Andrew Natsios, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development.
• Rice Says Coalition Members Committed to Disarming Iraq Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- The coalition that is currently engaged in the hard, dangerous work to disarm Iraq is strong, broad and diverse.
• Powell Says Liberation Will Change Negative Views of Iraq Policy Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell says the opinions of those who oppose U.S. policy on Iraq "will change rapidly" once the current conflict is ended and "the people of Iraq are facing a better life."
• U.S. Moves to Ensure Uninterrupted Persian Gulf Shipping Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- According to a March 25 statement issued by the State Department, the United States is moving to ensure uninterrupted movement of shipping and tanker traffic to and from the Persian Gulf. Coalition forces, the statement says, will be ready to provide any needed security.
• Powell Sees Role for U.N., EU, Others in Post-Saddam Hussein Iraq Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- After the fall of Saddam Hussein, "we think there is a role for the United Nations, for the European Union, all the many organizations around the world that can bring reconstruction expertise and money and governing expertise to Iraq," Secretary of State Colin Powell said during an interview with National Public Radio (NPR) in Washington March 26.
• BUSH BLAIR IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- President Bush is at his official mountaintop retreat for talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Mr. Bush went directly to Camp David from Florida, where he visited the military command headquarters that is coordinating forces in Iraq.
• OMB Director Says Bush Has Made Wise Decisions on Iraq, Tax Cuts Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- Presidents make tough decisions for a living, but not many have faced more tough calls in quick order than George W. Bush.
• Chamberlin Says U.S. Committed to Providing Assistance to Iraqi People Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- The United States is committed to providing assistance to the Iraqi people to help them realize a prosperous and just nation, says Wendy Chamberlin, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) assistant administrator for Asia and the Near East.
• Powell Says U.S. Determined to Bring War to Rapid End Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell says the Bush administration is determined to bring the conflict with Iraq to an end quickly with minimal damage and loss of life.
• Powell Calls Saddam Hussein Cause of Current Iraqi Conflict Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell testified before a Congressional subcommittee March 26 that the conflict now unfolding in Iraq was brought to the world by Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and his 12-year record of disobeying U.N. resolutions.
• Powell Tells Congress War in Iraq is About Removing Saddam Hussein Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- Military hostilities in Iraq are not about conquering the Iraqi people, but about putting down the dictatorial regime of Saddam Hussein that for all these years has been developing and using weapons of mass destruction against its neighbors and its own people, says Secretary of State Colin Powell.
• Bush Says Military Making "Good Progress," But War "Far from Over" Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- U.S. military forces are making "good progress" in Iraq but the war "is far from over," President Bush said in a March 26 address to hundreds of uniformed military personnel at MacDill Air Base in Tampa, Florida.
• Powell: War on Iraq "Is Being Conducted With International Authority" Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- In an interview with Abu Dhabi TV on March 26, Secretary of State Colin Powell said the war in Iraq is being conducted with international authority, and the United States is doing everything possible to minimize civilian casualties.
• EDITORIAL: PROTECTING IRAQI NON-COMBATANTS VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- U.S. led-coalition forces are carrying out a difficult and dangerous task in Iraq. To disarm and remove the Saddam Hussein regime, the coalition is defeating Iraqi forces that are systematically violating the laws of war. And the coalition is carrying out its mission with very few civilian casualties.
• U.S. Will Prosecute Conflict in Iraq Without Pause, Powell Says Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- In an interview with Al-Jazeera television on March 26, Secretary of State Colin Powell said U.S. policy is "to prosecute this conflict until we can bring it to a successful conclusion as quickly as possible" and to get humanitarian supplies into Iraq.
• Powell Wants To Set Up Iraqi Interim Authority "As Soon As Possible" Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- The United States wants to have an Iraqi interim authority in place "as soon as possible" after the armed conflict with Saddam Hussein's regime comes to a conclusion, said Secretary of State Colin Powell.
• U.S. Aid Effort For Iraq Largest Since Marshall Plan Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- A U.S. aid official says the U.S. relief and reconstruction effort for Iraq will be the largest U.S. aid project since the nation's Marshall Plan for Western Europe after World War II.
• POWELL / UN / IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell told Congressmen Wednesday he expects the United Nations to play a coordinating, though not dominant, role in the post-war administration of Iraq and the eventual return of power to Iraqi civilian authorities.
• CONGRESS/P-O-W VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Lawmakers on Capitol Hill say they will press for war crimes prosecution of any Iraqi found to be responsible for mistreating U-S soldiers held in Iraq. The House of Representatives plans to approve a resolution (Eds: Update intro as needed) condemning Iraq's mistreatment of U-S soldiers.
• State Department Expediting Export Licenses for Iraq Coalition Partners Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- The State Department issued an announcement on March 26 stating that special processing procedures for the export of military equipment to partners in Operation Iraqi Freedom are being instituted. The goal of these special procedures is to process license applications "in no more than 48 hours."
• EDITORIAL: IRAQI FREEDOM OPERATION GOALS VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- The security of the world requires the immediate removal of the evil, corrupt, and brutal Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein. To that end, a coalition led by the United States and supported by the United Kingdom, Australia, and forty other countries is now fighting in Iraq.
• BUSH / IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- President Bush rallied troops at the U-S Central Command headquarters in Florida before a meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

United Nations

• Security Council begins first debate on Iraq since outbreak of military action UN News Centre 26 Mar 2003 -- With military action in Iraq moving into its second week, the Security Council today held its first debate on the situation since the start of hostilities as it began hearing the views of non-members in an open meeting requested by the Arab League and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).
• Annan appeals to Security Council to unite and bring relief to Iraqi people UN News Centre 26 Mar 2003 -- Invoking "the terrifying impact" of war on Iraq, grief for the dead and anguish for the living, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan appealed today to a divided Security Council to unite on a common purpose, and to the international community to respond swiftly and generously to a new "flash appeal" for humanitarian aid for the Iraqi people.
• U.N. Security Council Plans for Humanitarian Needs of Iraqi Civilians Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- The Security Council March 26 worked on a resolution that would authorize Secretary General Kofi Annan to use more than $8 billion in the oil-for-food program to meet the immediate humanitarian needs of Iraqi civilians.
• U.N. Role Expected in Aid and Reconstruction in Iraq Washington File 26 Mar 2003 -- Although the U. N. Security Council failed to act in "disarming Saddam Hussein's regime and enforcing U.N. resolutions," White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said, the Bush administration wants the United Nations to play a role in postwar Iraq.
• U-N IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- The U-N Security Council is holding closed-door consultations to work on a draft resolution that would resume humanitarian aid to Iraq through the U-N Oil for Food Program. Secretary General Kofi Annan, who supports revising the relief program, says he is worried about an increasing number of civilian casualties.
• Annan 'increasingly concerned' by civilian casualties in Iraq UN News Centre 26 Mar 2003 -- Expressing increasing concern over civilian casualties of the conflict in Iraq, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he would be discussing with his top humanitarian officials today contingency plans for United Nations relief agencies to return to the country as soon as the military action permits.
• UN relief agencies express deep concern at reported bombing of Baghdad market UN News Centre 26 Mar 2003 -- United Nations humanitarian organizations expressed deep concern today over reports that an air strike on Baghdad resulted in heavy casualties at a civilian market.
• TURKEY: UNICEF gears up for crisis IRIN 26 Mar 2003 -- Deeply concerned over the impact of the war, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)in Turkey is boosting its regional efforts to safeguard the welfare of women and children both along the border, in the event of a possible refugee influx, as well as inside northern Iraq.

Foreign Reactions

• Statement of Support from Coalition White House 26 Mar 2003
• Press Release SC/7705 UN Security Council 26 Mar 2003 -- The Security Council met this afternoon to hold an open debate on Iraq, the first since hostilities began last week. The meeting is being held upon the requests of the Arab Group and the Non-Aligned Movement, as contained in their respective letters to the Council President
• POWELL /RUSSIA / IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell told Congress Wednesday Russia has promised a full investigation of U-S charges that Russian firms have illegally sold Iraq high-tech military equipment, including devices that could jam precision-guided U-S weapons.
• EU/TURKEY VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- The European Commission has proposed a large increase in aid to Turkey over the next three years, but says Ankara's effort to join the Europe Union could be jeopardized if it intervenes in Iraq or slows its political reforms.
• Support for Iraqi war protested in S. Korea KCNA 26 Mar 2003 -- Civic and public organizations in South Korea are strongly protesting against the authorities' support to the Iraqi war, according to KBS from Seoul. On March 21, members of four civic and public organizations, including the Citizens Federation for Economic Justice, made public a statement in front of the Sejong Cultural Hall in Seoul in protest against the authorities' support to the Iraqi war.
• ASIA IRAQ REACT VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Protest demonstrations against the U-S-led war in Iraq continue across Asia. Some of them turned violent.
• BRITAIN / IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair is heading to Washington for talks with President Bush on the Iraq war and post-conflict objectives. Mr. Blair is stressing the need for U-N involvement in a post-war Iraq.
• TURKEY / U-S / IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Turkey's top military officer has defended his country's right to deploy troops into Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq. But General Hilmi Ozkok emphasized there would be no deployment unless there was a refugee crisis or Turkey's security was threatened.
• RUSSIA/IRAQ/U-S VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov has strongly rejected claims that the U-S-led war on Iraq is a war of liberation. Mr. Ivanov told Russia's upper house of parliament that the war must be stopped. The diplomat also voiced support for holding up ratification of a key arms reduction treaty with the United States until hostilities are halted.
• ASIA IRAQ REACT VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Protest demonstrations against the U-S-led war in Iraq continue across Asia.

News Reports

• Press and Military Seem to Appreciate Media Embeds AFPS 26 Mar 2003 -- For the past week, the world has had unprecedented access to the combat zone in Iraq.
• Admiral Harvey on Iraq War VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- The U-S-led coalition is encountering fierce Iraqi resistance as it presses closer to Baghdad. However, a new brand of warfare gives the U-S a clear advantage from the skies and the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt a key role in the war. From the U-S-S Theodore Roosevelt in the Mediterranean Sea, Rear Admiral John Harvey spoke about this mission
• MCINTYRE-IRAQ-WEATHER VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- VOA's military expert, Dr. David McIntyre, with the ANSER Institute of Homeland Security discusses today's military operations
• KENNEDY-WARD-IRAQ VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Coalition forces are struggling to clear the way for the delivery of humanitarian supplies for Iraqi civilians. An aid convoy of seven trucks escorted by U-S soldiers reached the port city of Umm Qasr today carrying food and water overland from Kuwait. But, aid deliveries via the waterways have been delayed as coalition forces search for hidden mines.
• BACKGROUNDER Saddam Hussein VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- When Saddam Hussein was born in April of nineteen-thirty-seven, it did not seem likely he would someday rule the country. His father died before Saddam was born. So did an older brother. The family lived in the Tikrit area, north of Baghdad. Published reports tell of a poor and depressed mother and childhood years spent with relatives who mistreated him.
• IRAQ / HEARTS AND MINDS VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Military and political analysts say the American-led coalition may be fully expected to win the military campaign in Iraq, but they say winning the good will of the Iraqi people will be more difficult
• BACKGROUNDER Geneva Conventions VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Iraqi television has shown a videotape of American soldiers captured in southern Iraq. The soldiers were being questioned by Iraqis. Iraqi television also showed the bodies of several American soldiers who had been killed. The video was also broadcast outside Iraq by the Arabic television network al-Jazeera.
• Environmental Impact of Iraq War VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- Loss of human life is the most serious consequence of war. But the environment can also become a casualty and the ecological damage or contamination caused by armed conflict can linger long after peace accords are signed.
• Rebuilding Iraq VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- With the Iraqi War now in its second week, there's growing concern about not only the progress of the war, but also its aftermath. What will be the immediate needs of the Iraqi people? How difficult will it be to restore the rule of law in Iraq once Saddam Hussein is deposed? And how much will it all cost?
• BACKGROUNDER -- Kurds VOA 26 Mar 2003 -- American troops are now in Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq. The United States has a military commander for northern Iraq and southeastern Turkey. He says the command has been established to work with military and humanitarian aid organizations within both areas. The United States military would not say if the American troops will use their positions to attack Iraqi forces from the north.