The coalition aircraft have all returned safely with no damage. Damage assessment is currently being conducted. In the region, officials say they are convinced that a second wave of U.S. and British bombings will be unleashed to encourage insurrection of the sort seen after the Gulf War in 1991 when the Shi'ites rebelled against the Sunni Muslim government of Saddam Hussein. Anti-aircraft guns reportedly line the road to the south, from Kut to Iraq's second largest city, Basra, which has remained a military stronghold since the four days of U.S.and British bombings last month. The road is also lined with military encampments and barracks, some partly buried and some storing dozens of tanks.
Checkpoints are common and increasingly frequent on the outskirts of Basra.
There are no reported signs of mobile missile batteries. The main purpose of this show of force is to prevent trouble on the ground, not in the air. Before the bombings, Saddam split Iraq into four military zones in an attempt to stop areas from breaking away from his rule in Baghdad. Members of the ruling Ba'ath Party, most of them in their 40s and carrying machine guns, patrol the city streets and crossroads. All Rights Reserved.