U.S. Marines prepare to move on Basra, opening southern front

[thedrifter]

U.S. Marines prepare to move on Basra, opening southern front


By ELLEN KNICKMEYER
The Associated Press
3/21/03 5:36 AM


IN THE KUWAIT-IRAQ DEMILITARIZED ZONE (AP) -- The Iraqis weren't giving up their oil Friday without a fight.

U.S. Marines ran into mortar fire as they took control of the main highway leading to the key port city of Basra, at the heart of Iraq's southern oil facilities. British forces said they ran into "stiff resistance" as they moved against Umm Qasr to the south.

Thick smoke filled the skies from fires at some of the many oil wells and processing facilities in the region, where pipelines funnel Iraq's economic lifeblood through the al-Faw peninsula to the Persian Gulf. The cause of the fires not immediately known.

The peninsula was taken in the very first hours of the ground war, but at a cost: eight British soldiers and four U.S. troops on a CH-46 Sea Knight that crashed.

British Defense Secretary Geoff Hoon called the peninsula's capture "certainly a significant strategic success. It means that we have a bridgehead from which to operate, but crucially it means that part of the plan of the Iraqi authorities to destroy their oil wealth has been averted."

But he said troops encountered "stiff resistance" from Iraqi forces defending Umm Qasr, 20 miles south of Basra.

Day broke in the area with U.S. and British forces responding to the Iraqis with artillery, muzzle blasts breaking like lightning, sending frightened dogs running across the roads of abandoned farm towns. Jets attacked one position to the west of Umm Qasr, lights sparking in the air as bombs dropped.

The 1st Marine Division needed air support to suppress Iraqi mortar and small arms fire while seizing Route 80, which leads from Kuwait to Basra.

"Every now and then they pop off to let us know they're still there," Lt. Col. Steve Holmes, a Marine in charge of clearing berms for troops and armor to enter Iraq.

Supported by Cobra attack helicopters and howitzers, Marine tanks and armored vehicles rolled down Route 80 through the demilitarized zone between Kuwait and Iraq.

Tanks were placed on berms to provide cover for Marines moving on the road.

Until then, the Marines had taken side roads. Route 80 allowed a faster approach to Basra itself, and hundreds of Marine vehicles moved up it into Iraq.

The Marines had encountered resistance in the area for several hours Friday morning after moving to attack the nearby town of Safwan, which fell within hours.

The military continued to broadcast warnings to civilians in the area on loudspeakers to stay indoors and urging Iraqi troops to surrender.

On the Kuwait side, Marines in a sandbagged watchtower directed mortar fire at the Iraq side, where U.S. troops have watched the Iraqis, who appeared to be either digging defensive positions or setting land mines. "We'll find out soon enough," Holmes said.



Copyright 2003 Associated Press.

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