US troops suffer heavy losses in Baghdad fighting

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US troops suffer heavy losses in Baghdad fighting

Dakshin Murthy

Fighting raged in Iraq’s capital Baghdad on Sunday with United States-led forces meeting fierce resistance in their efforts to capture the city.

Iraqi Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf said troops killed 50 US soldiers and destroyed or damaged 16 US tanks close to Baghdad airport. Troops from the Republican Guard are still tightening the noose around US troops in the area surrounding the airport, he said.

Journalists in the area reported seeing a destroyed US Abrams tank on a main highway south out of Baghdad. Iraqi officers said five US soldiers had been killed in a battle at the scene. Dozens of Iraqi civilians crowded around the journalists taken to the scene, shouting “Down, down Bush” and “Long live Saddam Hussein”.

Iraqi soldiers stand on top of a destroyed US tank on the outskirts of Baghdad on Sunday

Iraqis with Kalashnikov rifles danced triumphantly over the hulk of the charred tank in the Sayadia area, a southern entrance to the capital. The journalists were taken to see the destroyed tank on the side of the highway from Baghdad to Karbala, as an Iraqi tank prepared to tow it away and stop it from obstructing traffic.

“We destroyed it with an anti-tank rocket along with the column of trucks and vehicles that was following it,” Ahmed Khoder, a member of the special Republican Guard, told reporters. Khoder said the fighting took place Saturday between 6:00 and 8:00 am (0200 and 0400 GMT).

“One hour later President Saddam Hussein came to congratulate us and asked us to fight until the end,” he said. Khoder, wearing civilian attire but armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle and with ammunition strapped across his chest, said there were four men and one woman inside the tank. “They’re all dead,” Khoder said.

The Iraqi Information Minister said Baghdad was still firmly under Iraqi control, but US officials countered it claiming they could move into the capital at will.

A barrage of rockets was heard on Sunday around Baghdad, shortly after heavy artillery echoed from the city’s outskirts. The explosions, accompanied by the roar of warplanes over the city centre, echoed from the west and southwest, where the US-led forces reinforced the international airport.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said Baghdad hospitals were struggling to cope with the wounded and the situation in the city was becoming desperate.

“The situation is extremely problematic now in terms of clean water supply and sewage evacuation. Everybody now is operating on back-up generators as there is hardly any power any more,” an ICRC spokeswoman said in Geneva.

With temperatures exceeding 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit), thousands of families set out on foot and in overloaded cars to find safety in remote provinces away from the capital.

According to agencies, US troops are fighting to take control of highways leading northwest and west out of Baghdad as they tried to encircle the Iraqi capital. Colonel John Peabody, commander of the Engineer Brigade of the 3rd Infantry Division said there were now about 7,000 troops at the airport – roughly a fourfold increase on initial levels.

Earlier, a stream of US tanks and armoured vehicles moved across the Euphrates river to bolster positions around Baghdad.

US Central Command meanwhile claimed that 2,000 Iraqi troops had been killed in the offensive against Baghdad. It said his figure could include soldiers of the elite Republican Guard forces. – Al Jazeera and Agencies.

I think ths may be true cause what the western media reports is that 2k-3k Iraqis died and only 1 casulitie was reported on their side…

What do you think?

Note - Use the correct procedure to upload and post images.

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*Journalists in the area reported seeing a destroyed US Abrams tank on a main highway south out of Baghdad. Iraqi officers said five US soldiers had been killed in a battle at the scene. Dozens of Iraqi civilians crowded around the journalists taken to the scene, shouting "Down, down Bush" and "Long live Saddam Hussein". *

No wonder the American's made a quick ana cowardly escape from Baghdad the other day when they made a small incursion (of which we did not see any pictures of btw).

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:halo:

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Come on - show us the pictures of your dash into Baghdad? :slight_smile:

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Raw Video - Watch sights and sounds of the 3rd Infantry fighting their way toward center city Baghdad

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Fox News - that says it all. :hehe:

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Yes, I suppose Fox staged the whole thing :rolleyes:

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Same stage set as the moon landing Sem.

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Don’t you think it is slightly puzzling that only a rabidly right-wing racist channel like Fox News is the only one to show these “pictures”? Do you have any pictures from other independent sources or otherwise?

So far all I have seen is pictures from various sources i.e. BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera of burnt out US tanks in Baghdad… :slight_smile:

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No one from Al Jareeza was riding with the 3rd Infantry that day. :bukbuk:
A conspiracy theorist’s day is apparently never over.

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fox "news" is a joke
calling it news is too high a compliment, it should be called regulerly scheduled propaganda
the current state of the american media betrays the fact that the US seems quickely towards facism
were'nt we told on the first day of this war that the "coalition" (really 1 country with another dragged in) had captured Basra, well guess what, they are still fighting there today

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Oh my God one US tank destroyed and heavy casualties of 4 servicemen. How is US going to cope with such a big loss by the brave defenders of Baghdad? Semi, OB, and UTD better join Fidayeen now or will be left behind.:-)

Last night FOX was showing a press conference of Iraqi Info Minister near the Ministry of Info building while US marines/army were having a walk through the Republican palace and a US tank blew up the Saddam on Horse statue live on TV in the background. I guess Fox buit a mock up Baghdad in Arizona for the shooting.

Dear defenders of Baghdad take your heads out from where ever they are stuck because it is about to be over. Iraqis are attacking Fidayeen themselves and pointing out the locations of Iraqi tanks and guns to the US forces to destroy.

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+++++++++++++++++++++++++
And I must add, the western media doesn't lie either, the western media is probably the best neutral source you can find...

I mean, western media's headlines are so believable... here some of the western media's headlines:

"2k-3k Iraqis died, 1 coalition casuality reported"
"2500 Iraqi soldiers give up to the Almighty Americans"
"100 Iraqis killed at Saddam International Airport, no coalition casuality reported"

I mean headlines like those are so believable... without a doubt.

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No Proud. you are correct of course. 20,000 US casualties so for but only 80 killed reported. If that makes you happy and proud in that little world of yours then fine. Thats what it was. 20,000 Americans dead. All right??

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I just don't understand how people can believe that American forces are not in Baghdad and not winning. How can someone be so devoid of reality? That is why I just cannot relate with some people here. I don't know what they are smoking.

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American forces are fighting in Baghdad. There is no doubt about it. However the fact that the Central command in Qatar lies through its teeth is also obvious. We were told the first day after the war broke that Umm Qasr was taken. Five days later they were still fighting to take it . Basra was in coalition hands on the third day and the news was that they were in the centre of Basra. Only now have they taken it and there is still fighting going on. Lies and more lies.

On the other hand lets assume that the central command in Qatar never tells a lie. Well in that case if the coalition troops were in central Basra on the third day then they must have suffered a humiliating defeat and pushed out of Basra because for the last two weeks they have been sitting outside. What is the truth? Care to comment.

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Imdad, that is what scientists called parallel universe.:-) While we have Fox and CNN in this universe they have victories over victories against the infidels. Blood of Americans flowing like a river on the streets of Baghdad. Saddam Hussein, the great king of the universe, in full control and leading them to victory on a horse. oops that horse was already blown up but dont worry Saddam will appear on a bicycle.

A woman in America sued Mcdonalds because coffee she bought was too hot. A President was almost impeached because he got a blow job from someone other than his wife.
These delusionists believe that Americans will take thousands of casualties without uttering a word to the press. Unbelievable!!

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Two facts no one denies.

  1. Saddam is a brutal dictator
  2. The American Forces will triumph over the Iraqi forces.

What is disturbing though are the constant lies and spins coming out of Centcom.

Having an overwhelming superiority over a foe which has been beaten down by 12 years of sanctions.. having all sorts of reconnaisance done thru inspections, having complete air superiority over all of Iraq, politically silencing or threatening any other nation from aiding or abetting Iraq, thus completely isolating it.. when we still get misinformations and lies and bull from in-bedded reporters one does grow skeptical of CentCom claims.

No one denies the Americans will rule Baghdad.. it just didn’t happen yesterday.. nor today.. but it’s underway… declaring victory after taking a leak in one of Saddam’s many palaces kinda casts doubt on the seriousness of the American effort to ‘liberate’ Baghdad.

P.S. Yogi.. dude.. you have to be the most naive person i’ve ever had the opportunity of meeting… the US Govt. doesn’t lie to it’s people … :rotfl:

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It's just pride and denial.

I suspect there is more to it however. By taking over such high profile areas, it is almost throwing down the gauntlet to the Iraqi troops (of whatever type) and saying "come and get me". Particularly since it was done in broad daylight. Given the suicidal nature of some of these Iraqi's, they will be enraged and start storming the US captured positions. Rumors of US troops in the city will spread through out the city like wildfire, and Iraqi's will come streaming into the area trying to eject the US troops.

Far better to fight this fight in the large government land areas than the residential areas. I think this is setting a very large trap, and if the Iraqi's do not eject the US by dawn the back of the Baghdad battle will be broken. A second armored column, artillery, very strong defensive postitions and a nearly moonless night could all be to the advantage of the US.

If there are truely no coherent commanders left on the Iraqi side, the remains of the military would more closely resemble a well armed mob than a structured military. Gonna be a rough night....

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Chosen1, there is no doubt soem groups of Iraqi forces have fought back to the best they could. But they are being defeated and will be defeated. Merely fighting back for your survival is not a victory. What matters in war is who won. Does it matter today how long it took to win over Hitler? Does it matter the battles he won? No. Few months from now it won't matter how long it took to totally control Basra. They had it militarily surrounded on the third day but did not pursue inside the city more aggressively for the fear of civilian casualities as most Iraqi fighters were dressed as civlians.