Bush is asking for $US74.7 billion to cover the cost of a month war.
WASHINGTON, March 24 AP - Key developments today in the Iraq war: - Coalition planes targeted Republican Guard forces just south of Baghdad in perhaps the largest assault to date on Saddam Hussein's highly trained troops, US officials said. Troops pressed toward Baghdad but many were halted by a sandstorm, 80km to the south. - Troops farther south were facing deadly ambushes and discovering that many Iraqi fighters had discarded their uniforms for civilian clothes. - General Tommy Franks said Saddam's regime is weakened but still issuing orders to military units - which are not always complying. Franks said his forces have captured 3,000 prisoners. - US President Bush is expected to ask Congress for $US74.7 billion ($A125.7 billion) to pay for the war with Iraq, assuming a month of combat, and for strengthening counterterrorism efforts at home. - Iraqi state television showed two men said to have been the US crew of an Apache helicopter forced down during heavy fighting in central Iraq. The Pentagon identified the missing men as Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D Young Jr, 26, of Georgia, and Chief Warrant Officer David S Williams, 30, of Florida. - In hopes of showing that he remained at the helm, Saddam boasted in a televised speech that "victory will be ours soon." US and British officials said the language was so general that it was unclear when the tape was made. - In his first appearance since the start of the war, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz held a news conference at a downtown Baghdad hotel. Aziz said the Iraqi leadership is in "good shape" and that Saddam is in "full control" of the army and the country. - Baghdad came under another heavy air attack but life returned to many streets later in the day, with stores reopening and traffic heavy in some areas. - The northern front appeared to be building, with American planes landing in Kurdish territory and airstrikes pounding positions of an Islamic group with alleged al-Qaeda and Baghdad ties. - A US envoy rushed back to Turkey to discuss Turkish plans to send troops into northern Iraq despite Washington's objections. The European Union head office also warned Turkey not to enter northern Iraq. - A British soldier was killed in combat in southern Iraq, the first such British death since the war began. Sixteen other British servicemen have died, and two others were reported missing. - UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned of a humanitarian crisis in Basra, scene of fierce fighting. Annan said "urgent measures" were needed to restore the city's electricity and water supply. - Arab nations called for an emergency Security Council meeting to demand an end to the US-led war against Iraq and the withdrawal of all invading forces. - Anti-war demonstrators clashed with police outside the US consulate in Hamburg and peace rallies emptied schools across Italy in a fresh swell of protests against the war in Iraq. AP was
