But I'm in Brisbane and I AM pissed!!!Read the second para- in...

But I'm in Brisbane and I AM pissed!!!

Read the second para- in bold


EYE ON THE GULF
'Baghdadograd': Saddam
prepares for final siege
Iraq plans to withstand coming attack
on Iraqi capital for days, weeks, months

Posted: March 3, 2003
1:00 a.m. Eastern

Saddam Hussein is making preparations for a triple-stage strategic defense of his capital city inspired by the Soviet defense of Stalingrad in World War II, reports the latest edition of Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, the new online intelligence newsletter.

Hussein himself has dubbed the defense strategy "Baghdadograd," and is ordering his military leaders to watch two Hollywood movies in anticipation of the attack by Americans – "Enemy at the Gates," the story of the German siege of Stalingrad, and "Black Hawk Down," about a one-day guerrilla battle in Mogadishu, Somalia.

The Iraqi dictator believes that if he can hold on to the capital and prolong the war, protests by Arab nations and the worldwide anti-war movement will allow him to negotiate a ceasefire and remain in power, says the G2 Bulletin report.

"Hussein, known for his admiration of the former Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin, and for his ongoing study of the Soviet Union during World War II, believes he will be able to gain critical time through a series of planned retreats, yielding a number of urban centers along Iraq's green belt on the banks of the Tigris river and its tributaries," says the G2 Bulletin report.

Israeli Chief of Army Intelligence Gen. Amos Gil'ad said he expects the Iraqis to form five circles around Baghdad. The two outer circles will be held by the lower-grade divisions. Inside will be additional circles of first-grade units, with the Republican Guard in the center.

As lines are broken, the troops' orders are to retreat back to the city to join civilian resistance fighters.

In Hussein's grand vision, he sees tens of thousands of Iraqis, the bulk of his army and many of the 4 million residents of the capital, resisting the attacking force, while laying death traps for the invading U.S. and allied forces.

An analysis by the State Department concludes Baghdad, with its approximately 4 million people, is an almost independently sustainable entity. One of the evaluations, dealing with the water situation, suggests that March, April and May could be significantly more advantageous for the defenders. Those are the months when water levels rise, sometimes dramatically, making the advance of mechanized forces and armor difficult.

"The Iraqi decision to buy time with the plan to create a 'Baghdadograd' includes the deliberate capitulation of many cities and villages, which will then be turned into centers of chaos," reports G2 Bulletin. "This situation will keep the allies fully involved, not only in attempts to pacify those centers, but mainly with the obligation of taking care of large Arab civilian populations."

Saddam Hussein was quoted by G2 Bulletin sources as saying, "If we will be as heroic as the Somalis and the Lebanese (during the siege of Beirut in 1982-83), we will inflict on the Americans heavy losses."

Some analysts believe if allied forces have to fight for Baghdad, their losses could reach somewhere between 10 and 20 percent. In other words, if an allied force of 50,000 men, out of the total ground troops numbering 150,000, battle to conquer Baghdad, they may loose an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 killed and wounded.

This price would seem "normal" according to the standards of major campaigns during World War II, but it is unacceptable to the American people, to the British and the Australians.

Subscribe to Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin for more details and other news-breaking reports.