Guerrillas fire rockets into the heart of Baghdad ( 2003-11-26 10:17) (Agencies)
Guerrillas fired rockets at
the headquarters of the U.S.-led administration in central Baghdad on Tuesday
and loudspeakers ordered personnel in the compound to take cover as explosions
echoed across the Iraqi capital.
"Attack. Take cover. This is not a test," warned loudspeakers at the compound
in one of Saddam Hussein's former palace complexes. Sirens wailed, flares lit up
the night sky and U.S. helicopters clattered overhead.
A spokesman for the U.S. 1st Armored Division which patrols Baghdad said at
least two rockets had been fired. One crashed through the roof of an empty
apartment building near the coalition compound and another landed near a bus
station.
"There are no reports of U.S. soldiers being injured, or of civilian
casualties" the spokesman said.
But he said two Iraqi police were wounded in a rocket-propelled grenade
attack near a Baghdad petrol station.
The U.S. Central Command, which covers Iraq, said attackers fired mortar
bombs at American soldiers at a forward position in Saddam Hussein's home town
of Tikrit early on Tuesday. The Americans retaliated with counter-fire.
"One person was found unresponsive and one was wounded," the command said in
a statement. A command spokeswoman was unable to explain what "unresponsive"
meant. "Just stick to the wording," she said.
Guerrilla attacks in Iraq have become increasingly brazen. On Saturday, a DHL
cargo plane made an emergency landing in Baghdad with an engine on fire after
being hit by a surface-to-air missile. A video tape delivered to a French
journalist apparently showed the missile being fired.
The footage showed several men with their faces concealed by scarves,
carrying grenade and missile launchers. One aimed a shoulder-fired missile at a
plane.
The attackers were shown escaping by car, and the tape then showed a plane
descending with smoke pouring from one wing.
ATTACKS ON U.S. TROOPS DOWN
A top U.S. general said earlier on Tuesday that tougher U.S. tactics had
halved the number of attacks on his forces in Iraq in the past two weeks, but
that assaults on Iraqis had surged.
General John Abizaid told a news conference U.S. forces had stepped up
operations to counter a rise in insurgent activity.
"These offensive actions in the past two weeks have actually driven down
attacks on coalition forces...I would say the attacks are down by about half,"
he said. "But unfortunately we have found that attacks against Iraqis have
increased."
U.S. administrator Paul Bremer predicted more violence. "We have to
anticipate that there will continue to be a level of terrorism in this country
in the months ahead," he said.
Bremer and the U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council unveiled a plan 10 days
ago to restore Iraqi sovereignty in June, reversing earlier U.S. insistence that
a new constitution and elections should precede any transfer of power.
"The principal reason for this agreement was an effort to reconcile different
positions: an Iraqi desire to directly elect delegates to a constitutional
convention and the coalition's desire to give Iraqis sovereignty at an early
date," Bremer said, adding there would be talks with the Governing Council about
security arrangements after sovereignty was returned.
"It is our anticipation that the (transitional) Iraqi government...will want
to have coalition forces here," he said.
In a letter to the U.N. Security Council on Monday, Jalal Talabani, president
of the Iraqi council, said a provisional legislative body would be chosen by May
31. This would elect a provisional sovereign government by the end of June.
Then "the Coalition Provisional Authority will be dissolved and the
occupation...will end," Talabani's letter said.
A new Iraqi constitution would be drafted by March 15, 2005, and then
presented to Iraqis in a referendum. A new government would be elected by the
end of 2005, the letter said. It asked for a new Security Council resolution to
endorse the timetable.
U.S. SAYS MORE TROOPS NOT NEEDED
Guerrillas fighting the occupation have killed 183 U.S. troops since
Washington declared major combat over on May 1, according to the latest
Pentagon figures.
Washington blames the attacks on insurgents loyal to Saddam and foreign
Muslim militants.
The United States has about 130,000 troops in Iraq, but some Congressmen say
more are needed to curb the insurgency. Abizaid, however, said there were enough
troops on the ground.
Asked whether U.S.-led forces were facing a coordinated guerrilla campaign,
Abizaid said there were a number of cells operating countrywide, mainly in urban
areas.
"There is some indication of regional coordination between the cells. We
haven't really seen what I would call levels of national coordination, although
that remains unknown," he said.
