Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=3/19/03

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=PENTAGON/IRAQ OVERNIGHTER (L ONLY)

NUMBER=2-300943

BYLINE=ALEX BELIDA

DATELINE=PENTAGON

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: Some 300-thousand military personnel, most of them American, have taken up final positions for what is expected to be a swift, sudden and shattering attack on Iraq. As V-O-A Defense Correspondent Alex Belida reports from the Pentagon, the only remaining uncertainty is when that attack will begin.

TEXT: President Bush's deadline for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to relinquish power and go into exile came and went without any visible signs that the U-S led attack was under way.

There were a series of coalition airstrikes on a variety of targets in southern and western Iraq, including artillery, missile, radar and communications sites, some near the key southern city of Basra, widely expected to be an early target in a ground offensive.

But a senior Pentagon official dismissed the strikes as "little" incidents. This official says the actual start of the all-out assault will be unmistakable. The assault will feature a massive attack by missiles and bombs coupled with parachute drops of troops on key sites and a much larger overland drive by ground forces.

Military commanders leading U-S and British troops poised along the Iraqi border in Kuwait are bracing for trouble when the invasion begins --- including possible chemical weapons attacks and oil fires.

But some Pentagon officials are reporting optimistic signs --- including indications that significant numbers of Iraqi troops will surrender without a fight. In addition, they say some Iraqi soldiers have already abandoned their posts, stripped off their uniforms and melted into the civilian population --- some even joining the flow of refugees heading for neighboring countries in anticipation of the U-S led attack.

Asked if coalition troops could be overwhelmed by surrendering Iraqis even as they begin their attack, the senior official dismisses the notion that it could be a serious problem.

In the official's words, "it is better to be swamped by surrendering troops than to be shot at by them."

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In the final hours leading to the deadline for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to leave the country, coalition aircraft dropped new leaflets giving Iraqi soldiers specific instructions on how to avoid harm when the attack begins.

The leaflets say Iraqi troops should gather in groups and display white flags on their vehicles.

Meantime, a Pentagon source says Baghdad is trying to prevent Iraqi Republican Guard forces from surrendering. The source tells V-O-A the Guard troops, considered Saddam Hussein's best, are being denied access to radios and civilian clothes and have been threatened with death if found with either.

There is no independent confirmation of the source's claim and the source did not say how the information had reached the Pentagon. (Signed)

NEB/BEL/PT