BRIEFING: AT WAR WITH IRAQ
BY WORLD TRIBUNE.COM WITH MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Day 18 Ñ April 6, 3003
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Iraq fires on Russian convoy fleeing Baghdad for Syria

NICOSIA Ñ A convoy of Russian diplomats and their dependents have come under Iraqi artillery fire.

Russian diplomatic sources said the Russian convoy was attacked as scores of vehicles from the Russian embassy in Baghdad were headed from the Iraqi capital to Syria. The Russian embassy was one of the last to be evacuated amid the war in Iraq.

The sources said the attack was believed to have stemmed from Iraqi light arms fire about 13 kilometers west of Baghdad. The United States has denied any involvement in the attack on the convoy, which contained Russia's ambassador to Baghdad, Vladimir Titorenko.

"We were aware of them leaving Iraq," Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks, deputy director of operations at U.S. Central Command, said. "We certainly had information about that and had an anticipation of how they might move. With that we wanted to ensure that we were providing as much protection as we could."

U.S. targets 'Chemical Ali', believes his bodyguard is dead

ABU DHABI Ñ The United States has destroyed the headquarters of a leading aide to President Saddam Hussein.

But U.S. officials said they are not certain that Ali Hassan Majid, head of the defense of southern Iraq, was killed in the attack. Majid is Saddam's cousin and carried out chemical weapons attacks against the Kurds in the 1980s, earning him the name "Chemical Ali."

"I don't think we know for sure [that Majid is dead]," Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks, deputy operations chief of U.S. Central Command, said on Sunday. "I know that we certainly knew that he was our target, and we know that we feel comfortable that his bodyguard is now dead. As to Chemical Ali himself, I think time will tell."

Brooks said the United States has attacked members of a higher rank in the Saddam regime. He would not elaborate.

U.S. airlifts 700 Iraqi opposition into southern Iraq

The U.S. military has airlifted into Iraq opposition forces financed by Washington.

The United States has airlifted about 700 combatants from the Iraqi National Congress into southern Iraq. The INC members were being deployed around the city of Nasiriyah.

The INC said it will help identify members of the Fedayeen Saddam, the regime militia that has been battling U.S. troops in and around Iraqi cities. Most of the militia members operate in civilian clothes.

The group said the U.S. military will deploy more than 1,000 INC members. The members will also help serve as liasions with the U.S. military.

"We are proud to contribute our forces," INC leader Ahmad Chalabi said. "The war of national liberation which Iraqis have waged for 30 years is now nearing its end. We call on the Iraqi people to join with us in removing the final remnants of Saddam's Baathist regime."

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