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Posted on 04/09/2003 1:47:53 PM PDT by BunnySlippers
Embedded CNN Reporter Recounts Battle Of Baghdad University
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--A 45-minute pitched battle Wednesday between U.S. Marines and Iraqi fighters entrenched in Baghdad University ended without casualties on the U.S. side, Martin Savidge, a Cable News Network embedded with the First Marines, 7th Battalion, reported.
Savidge said in a CNN interview that the Marines encountered heavy Iraqi sniper fire as they approached the university.
He said that when his Marine convoy entered the southeast of the city, it was met by a large number of Iraqi civilians cheering them and flashing victory signs. The U.S. forces' initial reaction was clearly one of relief at the warm welcome shown by the local populace, he said.
However, Savidge recounted that, when the convoy turned on to another street near the university area, the nature of the welcome changed dramatically.
The convoy was fired on by an Iraqi gunboat from a tributary of the Tigris river; this was followed by an attack from snipers' positions in the university.
A Marine team fired back at the Iraqi gun boat, suppressing that attack, Savidge said.
Meanwhile, the other Marines reinforced positions surrounding the university, where they were met with a hail of rocket-propelled grenades and machine-gun fire from campus buildings.
The Marines used armored personnel carriers to barge into the premises, and engaged the Iraqis for at least a half-hour of heavy-fire action, he said.
Savidge said the Marines methodically took out Iraqi positions one after the other, knocking out machine guns positioned on pickup trucks, and eventually wiping out Iraqi defenders.
"It was a very, very heavy fight, ending with a huge arms cache stored on the university grounds that went up like the 4th of July and continued to explode for a good 45 minutes," Savidge recounted.
Savidge said the Marines are still trying to assess the casualties on the Iraqi side.
Savidge said there was an eerie silence at the university area throughout the night, with the sounds of gunfire gone and streets deserted. Marines will be patrolling the streets in the vicinity through the night, he reported.
-By Rod Alvarez; Dow Jones Newswires
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04-09-03 1619ET- - 04 19 PM EDT 04-09-03
IOW, they shot it to tiny, sinking bits.
U.S. Marines arranged the meeting.
Berkley come to mind?
U.S. Marines Fight Iraqis at Baghdad University, CNN Reports
Baghdad, April 9 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Marines fought for about 30 minutes with unidentified Iraqi forces earlier today on the grounds of Baghdad University, just after being greeted by a jubilant crowd of city residents a couple of blocks away, CNN reported. No Marine casualties were reported.
The Marines were attempting to cross a bridge and link up with U.S. Army units in the city's center when an Iraqi gunboat opened fire on American armored vehicles. That assault was accompanied by gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades coming from buildings at the university and people in pickup trucks mounted with machine guns, CNN pictures showed.
CNN showed the Marines firing from tall grass at targets a few hundred meters away and destroying one of the trucks, known as ``technicals.''
The Marines also went to the home of Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, CNN reported. Although Aziz wasn't there, the furniture in the residence was covered with blankets, as if the occupants were expecting to return, the news channel said.
2003-04-09 15:15 (New York)
(CNN 4-9)
--Edward DeMarco in Washington
You sunk my battleship!
A good start. Then Lansing Mi and Austin Tx.
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