US Forces Seize Saddam International Airport

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, April 04, 2003

US Forces Seize Saddam International Airport

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US forces has captured Saddam International Airport, 20 km from the center of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, with almost no resistance from the Iraqi army, the ABC television network reported on Thursday.

A reporter of the ABC network said "US forces encountered very little Iraqi resistance, although some units of the 3rd Infantry Division did encounter scattered firing by Iraqi foot soldiers and men in pickups."

Earlier reports reaching here said US forces advancing on the Iraqi capital launched attacks on the airport Thursday evening, and dozens were killed in the assault.

An earlier report from Reuters said a village, which lies between the airport and Baghdad, was hit by a US rocket Thursday evening, killing both Iraqi soldiers and civilians.

The report said a pile of dead bodies was seen at one of the four hospitals where the victims were taken, most of them appearing to be military, adding more than 120 people were wounded in the attack.

Meanwhile, Iraqi officials put the total death toll at 83.

In an earlier live interview aired on the Qatar-based Al JazeeraTV, Iraqi Information Minister Mohammed Saeed Al-Sahaf refuted the US claim that the coalition forces had made great progress in their move towards Baghdad, saying the Americans and Britons had "no shame to lie."

He vowed that Iraq's elite Republican Guard would "finish up" the coalition forces in Baghdad.

Iraqi Residents Called to Defend Saddam Airport

The Iraqi authorities early Friday morning used loudspeakers to call upon Iraqi residents near the Saddam International Airport to take up their weapons to join battle against US forces, CNN reported.

Earlier CNN report said that US forces were still clashing with Iraqi defenders for the control of the airport Thursday night.

The report said that echoes of violent blasts could be heard from the airport, but adding it was not clear whether the airport had fallen into US forces' hands.

Earlier Thursday, the ABC television network reported that US forces had captured the airport, about 16 kilometers to the center of Baghdad, after meeting skirmishes from the Iraqi side.

Shortly after 8:00 p.m. (1700GMT) Thursday Baghdad plunged into complete darkness due to unknown reasons. The US Central Command had denied that coalition forces targeted power grid in Baghdad during airstrikes.

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