Fierce fighting as cities resist

NASIRIYAH - United States Marines fought a fierce battle with Iraqi forces in the southern city of Nasiriyah as units further north began an assault on elite troops defending the approaches to Baghdad.

US forces used Cobra attack helicopters and artillery in Nasiriyah on the sixth day of the US-led war after trying since Sunday to seize two vital bridges in the city over the Euphrates River on the road to Baghdad.

"The Marines are running a big convoy through the city.

"They came under fire and responded fiercely with artillery, Cobras and machinegun fire. It's not over yet," Reuters correspondent Sean Maguire said.

At least two men, apparently civilians, were killed by stray bullets. Women wept over the two corpses.

Two US Marines suffered light injuries and two wounded Iraqi soldiers were captured.

In Baghdad, distant explosions could be heard early in the day, apparently from another front line to the south. Baghdad was also hit by missile or bomb attacks.

The Pentagon said that US forces, which have advanced more than 320km into Iraq, were starting to confront a division of the Republican Guards deployed to defend the city.

However, a helicopter assault on the Iraqi force ran into strong fire.

The US military acknowledged losing one helicopter, and Iraqi television showed two men it said were the crew.

"Coalition forces have engaged Republican Guard Medina division troops with attack helicopters," Major General Stanley McChrystal, vice-director of operations for the US military's Joint Staff, said.

He said the Medina division was a linchpin to the Republican Guard defences of the capital.

Last night a sandstorm cut visibility to about 500m around a giant US military convoy near the town of Najaf, about 160km south of Baghdad, hampering use of helicopters and other high-tech gear.

In Baghdad itself, the strengthening wind also blew up dust, clouding the sky, cooling temperatures and, combined with oil fires that are still blazing, reducing visibility.

A senior Pentagon source said he could not confirm US media reports that Iraqi leaders had drawn a "red line" around Baghdad within which the Republican Guard had been authorised to use chemical weapons. Iraq denies that it has such weapons.

US commanders say the invasion is going according to plan and that some casualties were inevitable.

But an Iraqi military statement said that "their dreams of a short and easy war have started to evaporate".

"The disappointed Americans and their English followers and agents stand before the mouth of fire with no saviour," it said. The US and British forces have faced stiff resistance in towns including Nasiriyah, Basra and Umm Qasr.

A British military spokesman confirmed last night that British troops were probably going to go in to fight irregular guerrilla fighters resisting US-led invasion forces in Basra.

"We are meeting resistance from irregulars, members of the Fedayeen, who are extremely loyal to Saddam Hussein's regime," Group Captain Al Lockwood said.

"They are terrorising the citizens of Basra and we will probably need to go in."

British forces have declared Basra a military target after an Iraqi unit moved back into Iraq's second city with tanks, artillery and infantry.

CNN said an Iraqi Army division had engaged the British in about a dozen artillery exchanges over 24 hours.

Lockwood said: "Basra we have surrounded. We're carefully assessing the level of resistance.

"When we have a clear plan that will minimise risks to civilian infrastructure, the civilians themselves and of course our own troops, then we'll execute it," he added.

Arab nations asked for an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting, but it was not clear whether it would take place.

The US has promised to begin delivering aid within a few days to demonstrate that its fight is with Iraqi leaders only, not the people.

However, a British military spokesman said that British forces had secured Umm Qasr, Iraq's only deepwater port, after overcoming fierce resistance.

US Army General Tommy Franks, the overall war commander, said his forces were intentionally skirting enemy formations in their advance on Baghdad.

"Progress towards our objectives has been rapid and in some cases dramatic," Franks said, despite several setbacks.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair will travel to the US to meet President George W. Bush this week for the first time since the start of the war.

A British soldier was killed in action yesterday, bringing the total of British dead and missing to 19. At least 10 Americans have been killed, and 16 are missing.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Iraq