Saddam Son’s Palace Bombed
U.S. cruise missile struck Iraq’s Information Ministry on Monday while other blasts hit a palace used by President Saddam Hussein’s son Qusay Hussein (pictured), as the fierce air assault on Baghdad entered its 12th day.
BAGHDAD, Monday — A U.S. cruise missile struck Iraq’s Information Ministry on Monday while other blasts hit a palace used by President Saddam Hussein’s son Qusay Hussein (pictured), as the fierce air assault on Baghdad entered its 12th day.
On the same morning, U.S. Marines launched a dawn raid on the town of Shatra, north of Nassiriya, on Monday, aiming to kill senior Iraqi officials they believe are directing guerrilla attacks, Reuters correspondent Sean Maguire reported.
Among those targeted was Ali Hassan al-Majeed, or “Chemical Aliâ€, the cousin whom President Saddam Hussein has put in charge of the southern front. Majeed earned his nickname for overseeing the use of poison gas against Kurdish villagers in 1988.
Warplanes flew low over the Iraqi capital on Monday morning after a night of sustained blasts by missiles and bombs. A big explosion could be heard somewhere in the city centre as a rumble of blasts came from the southern outskirts. Other raids also targeted the northern city of Mosul.
A cruise missile hit the roof of the Information Ministry in one night-time raid, smashing some remaining glass panels and damaging satellite dishes. It was the second attack in three days to target Iraq’s official information headquarters.
The blasts triggered a fire near the ministry complex.
At daybreak several hours later, two more explosions reverberated through central Baghdad, hitting the presidential palace used by Qusay Hussein, Saddam’s powerful son, Reuters correspondent Samia Nakhoul said.
“We jumped off our seats,†Nakhoul said. “We could see flames coming out of the palace.â€
Qusay commands Saddam’s elite Republican Guard. His compound on the western bank of the river Tigris was targeted on Sunday and was hit by several missiles in the first days of the war.
Glass was strewn in a street beside the palace from the shattered window of shops which were closed at the time of the attacks.
U.S. and British forces also mounted a sustained series of bombings on the city outskirts where Republican Guard units are believed to be dug in to defend the capital.
Reuter
Ends
On the same morning, U.S. Marines launched a dawn raid on the town of Shatra, north of Nassiriya, on Monday, aiming to kill senior Iraqi officials they believe are directing guerrilla attacks, Reuters correspondent Sean Maguire reported.
Among those targeted was Ali Hassan al-Majeed, or “Chemical Aliâ€, the cousin whom President Saddam Hussein has put in charge of the southern front. Majeed earned his nickname for overseeing the use of poison gas against Kurdish villagers in 1988.
Warplanes flew low over the Iraqi capital on Monday morning after a night of sustained blasts by missiles and bombs. A big explosion could be heard somewhere in the city centre as a rumble of blasts came from the southern outskirts. Other raids also targeted the northern city of Mosul.
A cruise missile hit the roof of the Information Ministry in one night-time raid, smashing some remaining glass panels and damaging satellite dishes. It was the second attack in three days to target Iraq’s official information headquarters.
The blasts triggered a fire near the ministry complex.
At daybreak several hours later, two more explosions reverberated through central Baghdad, hitting the presidential palace used by Qusay Hussein, Saddam’s powerful son, Reuters correspondent Samia Nakhoul said.
“We jumped off our seats,†Nakhoul said. “We could see flames coming out of the palace.â€
Qusay commands Saddam’s elite Republican Guard. His compound on the western bank of the river Tigris was targeted on Sunday and was hit by several missiles in the first days of the war.
Glass was strewn in a street beside the palace from the shattered window of shops which were closed at the time of the attacks.
U.S. and British forces also mounted a sustained series of bombings on the city outskirts where Republican Guard units are believed to be dug in to defend the capital.
Reuter
Ends