Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Operations
Deployments
US Policy
United Nations
Foreign Reactions
News Reports

Current Operations

• TRANSCRIPT OF 3/30 CENTCOM BRIEFING CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- "We're in the 11th day of combat in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and a growing coalition of nearly 50 nations stands one day closer to liberating Iraq and removing the threat of the regime's weapons of mass destruction. Every day we diminish the regime's ability to command and control its forces. You've all seen that. And every day we erode the regime's grip over the Iraqi people. We're in fact on plan. And where we stand today is not only acceptable in my view, it is truly remarkable."
• Transcript: Media Briefing - Australia's Contribution to Global Operations Australian Ministry of Defence 30 Mar 2003 -- "Turning to land operations, our SAS carry out their task of long-range reconnaissance and surveillance inside Iraq, and there have been no significant issues or matter to report over the last period."

• IRAQ WRAP 3rd UPDATE VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Coalition forces Sunday kept the pressure on Iraqi forces, who continue to put up stubborn resistance. Meanwhile, U-S officials defended their war planning.
• COALITION GROUND FORCES HIT TERROR SQUADS CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- In a continuing effort, soldiers from the Army's 3rd Infantry Division and 82nd Airborne Division killed approximately 100 regime terror squad members in action earlier today at An Najaf and As Samana, respectively.
• PENTAGON:BURYING SADDAM VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Senior U-S defense officials have launched what appears to be a concerted effort to cast doubt on whether Saddam Hussein is alive or in complete control of Iraqi forces.
• IRAQ / WRAP (L-UPD) VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Fierce fighting and round-the-clock bombing is reported in Iraq, as coalition forces continue to push toward Baghdad. Meanwhile, the U-S Defense Secretary vows there will be no pause in the military campaign.
• BUSH IRAQ OVERNIGHTER VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- President Bush is back at the White House after a weekend at his Camp David retreat, where he consulted with members of his war council. Mr. Bush plans to make a quick trip today (Monday) to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to talk about homeland security.
• ISLAMIC JIHAD / IRAQ VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- The militant Palestinian group Islamic Jihad says a group of its suicide bombers has arrived in Iraq to help fight U-S and British forces.
• IRAQ-WRAP (L-2ND UPDATE) VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- There were both military and political skirmishes Sunday in the war in Iraq. U-S and coalition forces pressed for advantage on the battlefield, while U-S officials defended their war planning.
• PENTAGON NEGOTIATIONS VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Senior U-S defense officials are ruling out pauses, ceasefires or negotiated settlements of the war with Iraq.
• IRAQ TERRORISM VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- The commander of the coalition fighting the Iraqi government says his forces have seized what he describes as a massive terrorist camp in northern Iraq.
• SADDAM / STRATEGY VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Leaders of the coalition trying to oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein say they will win the war, in President Bush's words, 'however long it takes.' Few, if any, military experts would disagree with that prediction. But in the Arab world, many analysts say Saddam's strategy may be to drag out the war and claim some measure of victory as a result.
• PENTAGON/WAR PLAN VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Senior U-S defense officials are rejecting criticism, some of it from military commanders, that poor planning and inadequate forces are affecting the war in Iraq.
• COALITION FORCES TARGET MINISTRY OF INFORMATION CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- Coalition forces targeted the Ministry of Information in downtown Baghdad at 6:00p.m. EST today to reduce the Hussein regime's command and control capabilities.
• HISTORIC BOMBER PACKAGE STRIKES BAGHDAD CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- Last night, for the first time in military history, multiple B-1, B-2 and B-52 long-range strike aircraft targeted the same geographical area at the same time as part of a single strike package. After launching from separate bases, the bombers simultaneously struck leadership and command and control targets of the Iraqi regime in Baghdad using precision munitions.
• Iraq: U.S., British Maintain Iraq Assault Amid Reports Advance Slowing RFE/L 30 Mar 2003 -- U.S. and British forces pressed ahead today with the war in Iraq amid conflicting reports over how the war would be conducted in the coming days and weeks.
• V CORPS SOLDIERS INJURED BY CIVILIAN VEHICLE CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- Fifteen V Corps soldiers were examined for injuries after a third country national drove his truck into them while they were waiting in line at the Camp Udairi post exchange this morning.
• IRAQ/WRAP VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Baghdad Sunday was rocked by more missile and bomb explosions, as coalition forces pounded targets in the capital and other Iraqi cities.
• IRAQ TERRORISM VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- The commander of the coalition fighting the Iraqi government says his forces have seized what he describes as a massive terrorist camp in northern Iraq.
• PENTAGON/SADDAM VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has voiced fresh doubt that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein is alive and in command of his country's forces.
• IRAQ / HUMANITARIAN VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- With the arrival in southern Iraq of the British ship, Sir Galahad, humanitarian aid has begun flowing into the war-stricken region. However, coalition officials say large-scale aid distributions will only begin when security has improved.
• IRAQ RESPONSE VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Senior Iraqi military officials claim four-thousand Arab suicide-bomb volunteers have arrived in Iraq from throughout the Arab world. The Iraqi claims were made at a news conference U-S officials dismissed as propaganda. Iraqi officials also say American and British soldiers killed on the battlefield will be buried where they die.
• BRITAIN / IRAQ VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- America's senior military officer says it will take patience to win the war in Iraq, and the toughest fighting lies ahead. General Richard Myers was interviewed on British television Sunday.
• IRAQ / WRAP VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Coalition warplanes again struck targets in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, and the commander of the U-S-led coalition says his forces remain undeterred by a suicide bombing that killed four American marines Saturday.
• TASK FORCE TARAWA SECURES IRAQI STRONGHOLD; FINDS TWO CACHES OF WEAPONS AND CHEMICAL PARAPHERNALIA CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- Early Saturday, U.S. Marines from Task Force Tarawa secured buildings occupied by elements of the Iraqi 11th Infantry Division here.
• Myers Says Air and Ground Forces Engaging Iraqi Republican Guards Washington File 30 Mar 2003 -- The coalition's military campaign against the regime of Saddam Hussein is on track, and ground forces are already engaging Iraqi Republican Guard troops around Baghdad with armed reconnaissance, artillery, and Apache helicopters, according to General Richard Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
• Iraq: Baghdad Claims U.S. Helicopter Downed, Pilots Killed RFE/L 30 Mar 2003 -- Iraqi Information Minister Muhammad Sa'id al-Sahhaf said Iraqi forces downed a U.S. helicopter, killing its crew of two.
• COALITION AIRCRAFT STRIKE PARAMILITARY TRAINING FACILITY CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- Coalition aircraft bombed the main training facility of the Iraqi paramilitary forces at approximately 3:30 p.m. EST Saturday.
• COALITION AIRCRAFT STRIKE COMMAND AND CONTROL, INTELLIGENCE FACILITY CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- Coalition airmen kept the heat on the Iraqi regime Saturday evening with more precision bombing of regime control facilities in western and southern Baghdad.
• COALITION AIRCRAFT STRIKE BAGHDAD AIR DEFENSES CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- Coalition airmen strengthened their control of the skies over Iraq as they dropped satellite-guided munitions on two surface-to-air missile complexes in eastern Baghdad at 3:30 p.m. EST Saturday.
• MARINE DROWNS IN VEHICLE ACCIDENT CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- A United States Marine from First Marine Expeditionary Force drowned early yesterday morning when the High-Mobility, Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) he was riding in rolled over into a canal in South-Central Iraq.
• MARINE DIES WHEN HIT BY VEHICLE DURING FIREFIGHT CENTCOM 30 Mar 2003 -- A United States Marine from the First Marine Expeditionary Force was killed late Friday night when he was hit by a High-Mobility, Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) while engaged in a firefight with Iraqi soldiers in South-Central Iraq.
• After first week of war, airmen charged, ready AFPN 30 Mar 2003 -- With the first week of Operation Iraq Freedom successfully waged, 40,000 airmen spread across 30 locations stand poised for the long and difficult road ahead.
• Strikes target Fedayeen, other regime operations AFPN 30 Mar 2003 -- Coalition airmen kept the heat on the Iraqi regime March 29 with precision strikes on Fedayeen, air-defense and command-and-control facilities.
• With Iraqi Regime Going Down the Tubes, Where's Saddam? AFPS 30 Mar 2003 -- Where is Saddam?" Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld asked today during an appearance on Fox News Sunday.
• Forces not 'Paused'; Coalition Attacks Continue AFPS 30 Mar 2003 -- Army Gen. Tommy Franks said coalition forces are not "paused" and are not suffering from a lack of supplies.

Deployments

US Policy

• U.S. Contributes Additional $21 Million for Iraqi Relief Washington File 30 Mar 2003 -- The United States announced an additional contribution of $21 million to four international humanitarian organizations for relief operations related to the Iraq crisis, according to a Department of State note released on March 29.
• Suicide Attacks a Sign of "a Dying Regime," General Franks Says Washington File 30 Mar 2003 -- Suicide bombing attacks against coalition forces in Iraq are a sign of "a dying regime," says General Tommy Franks, commander of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) who oversees U.S. forces fighting in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
• U.S. Committed to Iraq's Freedom, Middle East Peace Washington File 30 Mar 2003 -- Public attitudes toward the United States will change as the "dynamics" change in Iraq and in the Middle East peace process, Secretary of State Colin Powell said in a March 30 interview with the New York Times.
• Defense Secretary Rumsfeld on ABC's This Week Washington File 30 Mar 2003 -- Kuwait/truck incident, suicide bombing, Republican Guards, threat to regime from coalition forces, military planning, troop numbers, Baghdad marketplace bombing, Iraqi people as hostages, Ansar Al-Islam, suspected chemical weapons sites
• Defense Secretary Rumsfeld on Fox News Sunday with Tony Snow Washington File 30 Mar 2003 -- Military planning for Iraq, countering terrorist attacks, regime's death toll on Iraqi people, Syria, marketplace bombings, coalition's advance, whereabouts of Saddam and sons, lack of central Iraqi control, regime's tipping point, population's fear of regime, Baghdad campaign, flow of forces, Ansar Al-Islam terrorist complex, al Qaeda connections, suspected movement of chemical weapons, Iraqi people as hostages to regime
• Rumsfeld Says Iraqi People Are Hostage to Regime of Saddam Hussein Washington File 30 Mar 2003 -- The Iraqi people are in large measure hostages to the vicious regime of Saddam Hussein, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said in television news interviews on March 30.

United Nations

• UN predicts new displacements in northern Iraq UN News Centre 30 Mar 2003 -- Citing intensified fighting, the United Nations today predicted fresh movements of civilians leaving their homes in the northern part of Iraq.

Foreign Reactions

• AUSTRALIA/U-S VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- Australia's defense minister says the United States failed to anticipate the fierce resistance from some Iraqi forces. But Defense Minister Robert Hill insists, despite the guerilla tactics that coalition forces face, the offensive is going well.
• INDONESIA/PROTESTS VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- In Indonesia, tens-of-thousands of people took part in the biggest protest in the country since the start of the U-S-led war in Iraq.

News Reports

• Be vigilant in FP measures, know locations of anti-war demonstrations USAFENS 30 Mar 2003 -- With the U.S. military engaged in combat operations with Operation Iraqi Freedom, anti-war protests are occurring throughout Europe and the world.
• Backgrounder-Iraqi Oil for Food Program VOA 30 Mar 2003 -- On Friday, the United Nations Security Council voted to approve a resolution restarting the "Oil-for-Food" program for Iraq. However, the Security Council made some changes to the resolution that created the program. The Security Council gave U-N Secretary-General Kofi Annan more power to administer the operations of the plan for the next forty-five days.
• IRAQ: Toxic smoke from oil fires a health and environmental threat IRIN 30 Mar 2003 -- Toxic smoke from burning oil wells in southern Iraq and from oil-filled trenches and bomb-ignited fires in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, poses risks for human health and the environment, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) reported on Sunday.