US and Britain Pound Iraqi Defenses in Massive Escalation of Airstrikes

Published on Sunday, February 23, 2003 by the lndependent/UK
US and Britain Pound Iraqi Defenses in Massive Escalation of Airstrikes
by Raymond Whitaker
 
Iraq has been ordered to destroy dozens of missiles which violate UN limits, but the US and Britain are not waiting to see whether Saddam Hussein complies.

In recent days, an Independent on Sunday investigation reveals, they have stepped up attacks on missile sites near Basra which could threaten the military build-up in Kuwait and the Gulf.

The raids are being carried out by aircraft patrolling the "no-fly" zones in northern and southern Iraq, established by the victors after the first Gulf war. They claim the patrols are being carried out in the name of the UN – especially ironic, given the passionate debate over the need for a second Security Council to authorize war on Iraq.