Post Latest Iraq War News Here - Part II

[CrONoS]

Bush Slates Billions for Iraq Allies
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It can pay to be a member of President Bush's coalition against Iraq.

Wrapped into the $75 billion war budget he proposed to Congress on Tuesday were grants and loans worth billions of dollars for what he called "partners and friends" in the Middle East, including Israel, Jordan and Egypt.

Assistance is also being offered to many less obvious members of Bush's so-called "coalition of the willing" from Afghanistan and Colombia to the Philippines and Slovakia, which Bush said will help them "wage the broader war on terror."

Administration officials say the U.S. aid is urgently needed to cushion the economic shock of war in the Middle East and beyond.

"Their economies are directly affected by the war and we are doing what we can to help them," an official said, noting that many countries supportive of the war effort were left out of the war budget and other nations, including Israel and Egypt, received far less money than they were seeking.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=focusIraqNews&storyID=2452094

[GRU]

Al Jazeera shows bodies, POWs, said to be British

DUBAI, March 26 (Reuters) - Al Jazeera television on Wednesday broadcast video of two dead soldiers and two prisoners of war, all said to be British.

The Arabic-language television network said it obtained the exclusive video following fighting at Zubayr, near the southern Iraqi city of Basra, over the past two days. It did not say where the video came from.

The video showed bloodied bodies in uniform, lying on their backs. The two prisoners were shown briefly, looking sombre, but there was no audio.

03/26/03 10:14 ET

[CrONoS]

GRU: What is your name? Is it the name of Russian Secret Service?
Glavnoye Razvedyvatelnoye Upravleniye??

[CrONoS]

War In Iraq: Fighting The People
Mar 26, 2003
Source: Russian GRU
=======
As of morning March 25 the situation on Iraqi fronts remains quiet. Both sides are actively preparing for future engagements. Exhausted in combat US 3rd Motorized Infantry Division is now being reinforced with fresh units from Kuwait (presumably with up to 1 Marine brigade and 1 tank brigade from the 1st Armored Division (all coming from the coalition command reserves) and elements of the British 7th Tank Brigade from the area of Umm Qasr. The troops have a stringent requirement to regroup and, after conducting additional reconnaissance, to capture An-Nasiriya within two days.

....The coalition command believes that a night attack will allow the its forces to achieve the element of surprise and to use its advantage in specialized night fighting equipment.

...According to radio intelligence at least two US soldiers were killed and no less than six US soldiers were wounded.

The Main Intelligence Directorate (Glavnoye Razvedyvatelnoye Upravleniye, or GRU) is the all-seeing eye of the Russian military. Everybody in the West knows about the KGB but the GRU has always been Russia’s primary and most capable intelligence agency with thousands of agents all over the world. This massive intelligence organization among other means of gathering intelligence is involved in all types of electronic reconnaissance operations, including communication intelligence (COMINT), electromagnetic intelligence (ELINT), radar intelligence (RADINT), television intelligence (TELINT) and infrared sets reconnaissance.
========

http://www.jihadunspun.net/intheatre_internal.php?article=49217&list=/home.php&

[GRU]

cronos_qc,

How do you know? ;-)

[GRU]

Iranian radio:
Deputy of Majlis (parliament) Ahmad Meidari, Abadan, confirmed today that the USA have expressed their excuse to Iran for two missiles, which accidentally hit a factory and living quarters of this Iranian city. He told that Unites States have expressed their readiness to cover all the expenses caused by those accidents.

[GRU]

Summary of Iraqi today's claims given by Russian sources:

1) Three US UAVs (pilotless aircrafts) downed at north of Iraq. Reporters would be available to see its wreckages.

2) Civilian losses: 9 killed and 19 injured at north, 4 and 18 at center.

3) Paramilitaries downed a coalition chopper close to Najaf.

4) Tribal warriors sieged 12 coalition tanks north to En-Nassiriya and destroyed 2 armoured vehicles.

[sleeperservice]

40 people dead in Bagdad bazzar.

30 heavily wounded.

[CrONoS]

SleepService: Where do you read or see this?

[GRU]

cronos, see previous page.
BBC reported that some local people have said the number of dead could be as high as 45...

[GRU]

U.S. troops in fierce battle for bridge near Najaf

NEAR NAJAF, Iraq, March 26 (Reuters) - U.S. troops fought a fierce battle with Iraqi forces on Wednesday for control of a bridge over the Euphrates river close to the southern Iraqi city of Najaf,a U.S. military officer monitoring the clash said. He said an unspecified number of U.S. tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles had been destroyed by Iraqis armed with rocket propelled grenades and automatic rifles during the clash at Abu Sukhayr, 20 km (13 miles) southeast of Najaf.

He said he believed that the U.S. crews, under the command of the 3rd Infantry division, had escaped from their vehicles but their fate was still unclear.

Reuters correspondent Andrew Gray, reporting from near Najaf, said he heard jets flying overhead. The officer said air support had been called in to support the U.S. forces.

[Chilean President™]

Upgrade news on the Baghdad market attack.

Emol.com: 2 tomahawks missiles hit a comercial/residencial area in Baghdad, killing 15 or 20 people and near 100 injured. There is a huge destruction in the area and 3 or 4 buildings were destrouyed and a undetermined number of civilians houses.

http://www.emol.com/noticias/internacional/detalle/detalle_noticia.asp?idnoticia=108075

http://www.emol.com/noticias/internacional/detalle/detalle_noticia.asp?idnoticia=108082

[Kyle]

Originally posted by GRU
Iranian radio:
Deputy of Majlis (parliament) Ahmad Meidari, Abadan, confirmed today that the USA have expressed their excuse to Iran for two missiles, which accidentally hit a factory and living quarters of this Iranian city. He told that Unites States have expressed their readiness to cover all the expenses caused by those accidents.

Didn't I hear that Iran called for the Iraqi ambassador for that? It was a few days ago granted.

[DanS]

There were several rockets that went in to Iran. I think there were two from the US; the rest from Iraq.

[GRU]

Russian Interfax news agency:

Head of Al-Jazeera's Moscow office explained about today's film from Az-Zubejr.

"We have shown bodies of 2 killed UK servicemen and pictures of 6-7 captured British soldiers [i have picture of one them, he is an Afro-Brtitish]. Besides, it was some destroyed equipment - one armoured vehicle and some cars as well as one downed UAV".