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US tanks move into last Saddam stronghold of Tikrit
Tikrit, Iraq, Apr 14: United States tanks took up position today morning in the main square of Saddam Hussein`s hometown of Tikrit, the last stronghold of the ousted Iraqi president.
Tikrit, Iraq, Apr 14: United States tanks took up position today morning in the main square of Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, the last stronghold of the ousted Iraqi president.
"Around 20 tanks" entered the city centre along the main road from the northern town of Kirkuk across a battered bridge over the River Tigris, the witnesses said.
There has been fierce fighting on the southern outskirts of Tikrit between Iraqi forces and US troops backed by helicopters, and US tanks reached the town's main square at dawn on Monday.
The attacks come despite an offer from local tribal leaders to negotiate a peaceful surrender of the Iraqi army. Tribal Chief Yussuf Abdul Aziz al-Nassari told a news agency correspondent: "We are ready to surrender, but let them stop their bombardment." He said he was only asking for 48 hours to persuade Iraqi troops to lay down their arms.
Meanwhile, US Marines engaged in a heavy gun battle with snipers early today outside a hotel in central Baghdad. Looters earlier swarmed a palace on the Tigris River although elsewhere in the city the convulsions of anarchy appeared to be petering out.
The US Marines outside the Palestine Hotel, where many international journalists are staying, took away at least one man, but firing and the hunt for the gunmen, which began last night, continued, with flares in the sky lighting up the area.
But elsewhere people felt secure enough to leave their homes and drive around, causing the late morning traffic jams usually so common to the capital. Buses started running in the centre of town.
US Army troops also guarded banks and hospitals. Children ventured out to play soccer. Shops began to open and street vendors hawked vegetables loaded onto donkey carts.
Storming the Al-Salam Presidential Palace on the river's western bank, the looters marveled bitterly at Saddam's life of luxury as they passed shards of crystal from chandeliers and shattered mirrors. Sporadic bursts of gunfire could be heard on the palace grounds.
The looters, including women in black chadors and children, hauled away statuary from the manicured lawns and stripped white marble off the walls. Some tried to carry away massive gilded doors.
They tossed hand grenades in the ponds and walked away with nylon bags full of the dead fish that had floated to the surface.
US troops who took control of Baghdad have been trying to curb widespread looting while still facing pockets of resistance in the capital.
Speaking to an American television channel, the American commander of the war, Gen Tommy Franks, said his troops had divided the city into about 60 zones, and "probably 10 to 15 of the zones we're not sure about yet, and we expect to find groups of five to 25 hardcore folks."
He said the holdouts in Baghdad included Republican Guard soldiers, fidayeen militiamen, special security organization gunmen and "a number" of foreigners, specifically Syrians. Bureau Report
The US Marines outside the Palestine Hotel, where many international journalists are staying, took away at least one man, but firing and the hunt for the gunmen, which began last night, continued, with flares in the sky lighting up the area.
But elsewhere people felt secure enough to leave their homes and drive around, causing the late morning traffic jams usually so common to the capital. Buses started running in the centre of town.
US Army troops also guarded banks and hospitals. Children ventured out to play soccer. Shops began to open and street vendors hawked vegetables loaded onto donkey carts.
Storming the Al-Salam Presidential Palace on the river's western bank, the looters marveled bitterly at Saddam's life of luxury as they passed shards of crystal from chandeliers and shattered mirrors. Sporadic bursts of gunfire could be heard on the palace grounds.
The looters, including women in black chadors and children, hauled away statuary from the manicured lawns and stripped white marble off the walls. Some tried to carry away massive gilded doors.
They tossed hand grenades in the ponds and walked away with nylon bags full of the dead fish that had floated to the surface.
US troops who took control of Baghdad have been trying to curb widespread looting while still facing pockets of resistance in the capital.
Speaking to an American television channel, the American commander of the war, Gen Tommy Franks, said his troops had divided the city into about 60 zones, and "probably 10 to 15 of the zones we're not sure about yet, and we expect to find groups of five to 25 hardcore folks."
He said the holdouts in Baghdad included Republican Guard soldiers, fidayeen militiamen, special security organization gunmen and "a number" of foreigners, specifically Syrians. Bureau Report