24 March 2003
Pentagon Says Coalition Moving to "Break the Back" of Iraqi Regime
(Defense Department Report, March 24: Iraq Operational Update) (600) By Jacqui Porth Washington File Staff Writer Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke says the coalition is acting together to "break the back" of Saddam Hussein's leadership regime "with as few casualties as possible." Providing an update on the fifth day of "Operation Iraqi Freedom," Clarke also said that humanitarian supplies, including medicine and food, are poised at Iraq's borders and will begin to flow in as soon as it is "safe enough to do so." Clarke briefed reporters at the Pentagon March 24 with Major General Stanley McChrystal, vice director for operations for the Joint Staff. He said the movement of humanitarian aid awaits the completion of sea mine clearing operations in the waterway leading to the port of Umm Qasr. McChrystal said the coalition campaign continues to unfold "superbly" and "all of the pieces are falling in place." Providing some of the recent highlights of the effort, he pointed to the advance of coalition forces some 320 kilometers (200 miles) inside Iraq, the successful destruction by Patriot missile batteries of two Iraqi missiles launched against Kuwait, and the engagement of U.S. Apache helicopters against the Iraqi Medina Division. Iraq's Medina Division is the linchpin to the consistency of the Republic Guard's defense, McChrystal said. He acknowledged that one U.S. Apache helicopter was reported missing in the recent engagement. The military briefing official also expressed regret for unintended casualties caused when a Syrian bus was inadvertently struck by a bomb inside Iraqi territory on March 24. McChrystal said an American pilot had already launched an air strike against a bridge in western Iraq when the bus came into view. Bridge and bus were struck simultaneously. Clarke and McChrystal both talked about the need for the Iraqi government to treat coalition prisoners of war (POWs) according to the explicit terms of the Geneva Conventions. Clarke said Iraq must allow representatives of the Red Cross access to the POWs to ensure their welfare and proper treatment. McChrystal said everything would be done to bring the POWs home safely. Clarke said that care is being taken to treat Iraqi POWs in the best possible way. She said more than 50 Iraqi POWs are now receiving medical care aboard U.S. Navy ships in the region, and she said arrangements are being made for the Red Cross to visit them very soon. In other developments, McChrystal said it may be the case that Saddam Hussein's Fedayeen paramilitary forces are preventing a number of regular soldiers from fulfilling their desire to surrender to coalition troops. In the past 24 hours, he said, some 1,000 sorties have been flown against key leadership targets, Republican Guard and Special Republican Guard units, and emerging targets of opportunity. McChrystal also said missions are being flown in support of Special Operations forces as well as to suppress potential Iraqi ballistic missile launches. In response to a question about reports that Russia has provided Iraq with night vision goggles and GPS (Global Positioning System) jamming equipment, McChrystal said U.S. military planners had been aware of that possibility for some time, and the existence of such equipment is not having a negative effect on the prosecution of the coalition campaign. Clarke also denounced Iraqi forces who have made false offers of surrender to coalition forces in an effort to ambush them; she said such actions are clear violations of the laws of war. Such acts of "treachery" are prohibited by those laws, she said, adding, "Some liken these acts to terrorism." (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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