Word: basra
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...commanders had held off on for the past 48 hours, and ground troops advanced deep into Iraq. At the same time, U.S. and British ground forces moved into southern and central Iraq, having seized Iraq's only deep-water port at Umm Qasr and begun fighting for control of Basra, the capital of Shiite southern Iraq. Air strikes have also blasted targets in the key northern cities of Mosul and Kirkuk, where unconfirmed reports also suggest U.S. airborne troops may have seized control of important oilfields. Now, as we move into the next phases of the war, here are five...
...what may be a dress rehearsal of any battle for Baghdad, British forces are advancing quickly on Basra. But their commanders have indicated that they plan to avoid fighting street by street for control of this city, planning to enter only once they'll be welcomed in. That possibility is not as outlandish as it may sound - Basra was the epicenter of the bloody Shiite revolt against Saddam in 1991, and coalition commanders have reason to suspect that Saddam's control of the city may once again be broken by an internal uprising. Images of coalition forces being welcomed...
...same time, U.S. and British ground forces are moving into southern and central Iraq, having seized Iraq's only deep-water port at Umm Qasr and begun fighting for control of Basra, the capital of Shiite southern Iraq. Air strikes have also blasted targets in the key northern cities of Mosul and Kirkuk, where unconfirmed reports also suggest U.S. airborne troops may have seized control of important oilfields...
...Arabs praying for the best, the story of the previous Western invasion of Iraq offers them little comfort. British forces seized Basra and then Baghdad from the Ottoman Empire in World War I, later forming the modern state out of three unconnected provinces inhabited by Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites. Iraqi nationalists quickly became disillusioned with their new, Western masters. The Revolution of 1920 left hundreds of British casualties. The British, America's main ally in this latest invasion, managed to implant a friendly monarchy. But the Hashemites were finally overthrown in a coup d'etat...
...southern Iraq, however, reconnaissance on the key city of Basra is proving difficult. Overhead surveillance can help identify targets and track large weapons and troop movements. "We know where everything is," the Western diplomat asserts. But Special Forces Groups face a much harder task, forging local alliances and even gauging what the mood is on the ground. "Southern Iraq is an intelligence black hole," says a senior British military source, noting that Marine assault units will be guided into the area by Iraqi exiles, some of whom haven't been inside their native land for a decade...