Uprising By Shiites in Basra Underway; British Pouring Artillery into City

Sky News Live Feed ^ | 03/25/03 | TonyInOhio

[TonyInOhio]

Just monitored on Sky News: embedded reporter says Shiites in Basra have begun, in his words, a "popular uprising" against the Saddam forces still in the city. British Army units are "pouring" artillery into the city (likely isolated areas) preparing to move in.

[Alberta's Child]

You are much more optimistic than I am. Recent U.S. history tells me that the more likely scenario is that we don't have a clue about what we are doing in the long term.

[LS]

I'll tell you what: after reading the history of WW I and WW II, if there are two countries I want on my side in a war, it's the Brits and the Aussies.

Yes, the Russians have proven over and over again that they are good fighters, but these Anglo types are very tough.

[Dog]

Saddam was starving the people of Basra..

[dfwgator]

Saddam has ham-handedly tried to overlay Ba'athism with Islam in an attempt to curry favor with the rest of the Arab world.

Even Joe Stalin resurrected the Russian Orthodox church when the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union.

[carton253]

He's always pessimistic... he prides himself on it...

[areafiftyone]

OMG They are saying it is political propaganda!!! You can laugh even harder now!!

[ladtx]

Self-serving? They're all self-serving to a point. Jingoistic - hardly.

[Grampa Dave]

Actually this was the painting by number by our SAS allies!

The drama involving the Desert Rats took place in Zubayr, seen as a hotbed of resistance led by Ba'ath party loyalists.

A mixed force of Desert Rats and Royal Marines stormed a building identified as the Ba'ath party's key regional headquarters in the early hours of today.

They killed 20 Ba'ath party officials, Special Security Organisation members and Fedayeen fighters, Saddam's personal militia.

A senior Ba'ath party official was taken prisoner and is to be questioned on his knowledge of the resistance effort in and around Basra.

[Travis McGee]

There will be a problem in the post-war Iraq, keeping the current occupants of that city from turning it over to Tehran, but that is for another day.

not true. All during the Iran-Iraq war, the Iranians tried to flip the Iraqi shias, and failed. The Iraqi Shias, despite Saddam's brutality, are Arabs, not Persians, and identify as Iraqis.

[gabby hayes]

Just make sure there are enough survivors to be liberated. And then to feel really virtuous, we can roll on into Sudan and do our part to eradicate slavery. After that.....the possibilities are almost endless. And if GW's "Farewell Address" doesn't quite jibe with our actions, well, too bad.

[general_re]

Lemme just shout out here - this can only have been made possible by the famed "Desert Rats" and their actions against the Baathists in Basra over the last day or so, and even now, it sounds like they're preparing to move in, in support of the insurgents.

A big 'ol hearty freeper "Thanks!" to the Desert Rats, who may very well have triggered the beginning of the end here...

[oyez]

The left will shut up when the politicians quit asking for funding.

[TonyInOhio]

Embedded Sky News reporter on now...British forces are massing on outskirts of city, using artillery to take out mortars

British Colonel back on now

[Destro]

I will eagerly await this news story. If true (I question everything good and bad news) it is good news, if they can pull it off because we can't do it ourselves yet. In addition this should have happened days ago.

[Illbay]

Is that true? I didn't realize that the Shi'ites made up the majority of Iraq's population. Sort of explains why on the Palestinians (who aren't too religious anyway) are screaming and yelling in support of Saddam.

[San Jacinto]

If they do well and exterminate the fascists Saddamites amongst them

I assume you are referring to the destruction of the Baath party, and I agree with that. However, don't forget that the shiites are the majority in Iraq. They dominate the population throughout southern Iraq. For decades, they have been politically dominated by the sunni muslims, who are a minority overall, but who form the majority in central Iraq, including Baghdad. Saddam is a sunni.

It would not be good to have the shiites start 'exterminating' sunnis in general. For one thing, it might make a popular uprising in Baghdad less likely. Secondly, the shiites are more fundamentalist than the sunnis and are a natural ally to Iran.

One of the tightropes we will have to walk after this is over, is to fashion a post-saddam Iraq which remains independent from and somewhat of a balance to Iran.

[areafiftyone]

The Bastard! I hope he rots!

[carton253]

When Great Britain drew the borders... they do so for economic reasons. They cut the Shi'ite population off from Iran...

[JohnHuang2]

..Iraqi forces wouldn't let water into the civilians

These bastards will fry for this