US order troops to Gulf, jets strike Iraq radar

1.00pm

WASHINGTON - The US military ordered more than 11,000 desert-trained troops to begin heading to the Persian Gulf and Western jets struck an Iraqi defense radar on Wednesday (Thursday NZT) as pressure mounted on Iraq to disarm.

The movement, including tanks and attack helicopters, was the first deployment of a full combat division of US forces to the area since the 1991 Gulf War. Much of the Army division's equipment is already waiting in the region.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has put thousands of troops on notice and could soon double the nearly 60,000 US personnel -- including Navy and Air Force troops -- in the Gulf region.

But the forces ordered to deploy so far are far short of the more than 250,000 US troops sent for the Gulf War. US officials are estimating a possible military campaign in Iraq could cost at least the $61 billion expended on the 1991 effort that forced Saddam Hussein's troops from neighboring Kuwait.

The US Central Command in Florida, meanwhile, said aircraft taking part in U.S-British patrols hit the military defense radar after it was moved into a "no-fly" zone in southern Iraq. Iraq said the planes struck civilian targets, killing one.

The aircraft used precision-guided weapons on the radar, near al Qurnah, 130 miles southeast of Baghdad, a command spokesman said.

An Iraqi military spokesman said Iraqi anti-aircraft and missile batteries fired back.

"The US administration and its servant Britain added a new crime to their black record ... when their hostile planes attacked today civilian and service installations killing one citizen and wounding two," the Iraqi said.

BUILD-UP AND INSPECTIONS

A recent escalation in the number of such incidents has coincided with the US military build-up.

While President Bush has made no decision to invade Iraq over Washington's accusations that Baghdad is developing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, he has warned that war may become necessary.

On Tuesday he reminded the Iraqi president that the growing US military presence in the Gulf was designed to make sure he "heard the message." The deployment of a full division, which includes foot soldiers, armor, aviation and artillery, was the latest visible signal the Bush administration was moving toward military action to force Iraq to disarm.

A UN Security Council resolution passed in November gave Baghdad a final chance to reveal all details of its weapons programs, as required by resolutions going back to the Gulf War, or face "serious consequences."

UN weapons inspectors are to report back to the Security Council on Jan. 27 on whether they have found any signs of weapons of mass destruction.

Iraq says it has no banned weapons and has invited chief arms inspector Hans Blix to Baghdad before the report is made. UN officials said on Wednesday Blix likely would travel there between Jan. 18 and 20.

While Blix's report will not be an automatic trigger for war, most United Nations diplomats believe it could lead to one in record time. Not coincidentally, the date is about when the US military would be ready to attack.

NO NEW YEAR'S RESPITE

There was no new year respite for the United Nations weapons inspectors in Baghdad, who visited four more suspect sites on Wednesday, a public holiday in Iraq.

UN sources said experts were preparing to launch their first aerial inspections by helicopters and setting up a base to facilitate inspections in northern Iraq. Iraqi officials said the inspectors had discussed the flights with them.

A chemical team visited Al Majd Company stores south of Baghdad, and a missile team inspected al-Hareth Factory in Taji north of the capital.

The spokesman said the Al Majd site was a store containing some electronics and corrosion-resistant material. It is run by Iraq's Military Industrialization Commission, which oversees development and production of weapons and ammunition.

Khudier Daoud, chief engineer at Al Majd, said the company was involved in mechanical work on cooling and freezing equipment and the inspectors had been given immediate access.

"(The inspectors) made it a point to come on this day and despite that we welcomed them," Daoud said after the one-hour inspection.

The UN spokesman said two biological teams inspected a brewery near Baghdad and a soft drinks plant in the capital.

US Army officials said the 1st and 3rd brigades of the 3rd Infantry Division would soon begin moving to join the 2rd brigade of more than 4,000 troops, now training in Kuwait.

The division specializes in desert warfare, and its brigades have been rotating through desert-training exercises in Kuwait and Southern California for months.

- REUTERS

Herald feature: Iraq