Baghdad, Sept 28: Pentagon mobilised 15,000 fresh troops for duty in Iraq as the US military announced today it had found large caches of weapons, including missiles, near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. Two US soldiers were meanwhile wounded today in a bomb attack on their convoy south of Baghdad, a military spokesman said. Sergeant Mark Ingham said the attack with an "improvised explosive device" occurred about 11:00 am (1230 IST) in the town of Iskandariya, 45 km away from the capital. The United States is trying to persuade other powers, notably war opponents France, Germany and Russia, to contribute to a stabilisation force in Iraq where US troops come under daily attack. But at a summit yesterday with President George W Bush, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow's contribution to policing and rebuilding in Iraq could only be decided after a new UN resolution is passed, setting out the UN role in the war-stricken country run by a US-led coalition.
Bureau Report