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Haaretz is reporting in their newsflash that the US will launch the attack in another 24 to 48 hours. They source it to CBS news.

A BRITISH commander warned his men last night that not all of them would come home alive. He instructed his soldiers to wrap their fallen comrades in a sleeping bag, fight on and grieve for them after the heat of the battle. Lieutenant-Colonel Tim Collins, the man leading the battlegroup of the 1st Battalion of The Royal Irish, told his troops: “It is my foremost intention to bring every single one of you out alive but there may be people among us who will not see the end of this campaign. “We will put them in their sleeping bags and...

To the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, members of the intelligence agencies, the diplomatic community, and all others tasked to prosecute the war in Iraq:You are on the eve of a critical mission to secure the safety and security of the United States and the civilized world. You have every reason to expect victory, yet must remember that victory never comes without costs. You face a determined enemy of proven tenacity, whose dictatorial reign is one of the longest in the world today. Your enemy will stop at nothing to see that his reign continues, and it is...

Masses of Iraqi soldiers are deserting and senior members of President Saddam Hussein's ruling family circle are defecting as the countdown to a British and US invasion reaches its final hours. In northern Iraq, on the border with Kurdistan, up to three-quarters of some Iraqi regiments have already fled. In the mainly Shia Muslim south, Kuwaiti border guards are having to turn Iraqi soldiers back - telling them that they must wait until an attack begins before they can surrender. And in a highly significant development in Baghdad a half-brother of President Saddam, who is regarded as the dictator's closest...

PRIME Minister John Howard will address the nation tonight to explain to the Australian people his reasons for committing troops to a pre-emptive war against Iraq. The address is due to be broadcast more than seven hours after the deadline set by United States President George W Bush for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to leave his country. Mr Bush's deadline expires at midday AEDT today, with many expecting war to break out almost immediately. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said war could start today. "I think there's every chance that that's going to happen," he said.The attack could start just as...

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According to sources in Washington, D.C., President George W. Bush is tentatively scheduled to address the nation at 9 p.m. EST on March 19 (0200 GMT March 20).

The Home Front Command ordered all Israelis to open and fit their gas mask kits Wednesday night, and have them nearby at all times. Earlier in the day, the IDF issued a similar order to its soldiers, due to the possibility of a U.S. strike on Iraq in the coming hours. Military Intelligence chief Major-General Aharon Ze'evi predicted Wednesday that the American-led offensive against Saddam Hussein's Iraq will be launched shortly after President George Bush's ultimatum expires at 8 P.M. Washington time Thursday, or 3 A.M. Israel time. Ze'evi also said that the chances that Iraq would be able to...

Key developments concerning Iraq 38 minutes ago By The Associated Press DOHA, Qatar - Latest developments in the Iraq (news - web sites) crisis: _Columns of U.S. tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles and fuel trucks fought sandstorms as they snaked through the Kuwaiti desert toward the Iraqi border. About 300,000 U.S. and British troops were within striking distance of Iraq, backed by more than 1,000 warplanes. _Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) showed no sign he would submit to the 0100 GMT Thursday deadline to resign. Iraq's parliament reaffirmed support for Saddam, while armed members of his Baath Party...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - On the brink of war with Iraq, President Bush has surged in public opinion polls as Americans put aside their doubts about the conflict to rally around their leader in a time of crisis. Polls taken since Bush delivered his 48-hour ultimatum to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on Monday have found a jump in support for Bush and for his plans to use military force to disarm Baghdad. "It's a matter of national unity in a crisis," said Andrew Kohut, director of the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. "People are putting aside their...

Wed Mar 19,10:11 AM ET Tank crews from the Alpha Company 4th Battalion 64 Armor Regiment raise their pistols in the air and perform a 'Seminole Indian war dance' before convoying to a position near the Iraqi border Wednesday, March 19, 2003. The commander of the 3rd Infantry Division Maj. Gen. Buford Blount III ordered his troops to reposition to locations near the border as Predisent Bush's deadline for Saddam to leave Iraq (news - web sites) approached.(AP Photo/John Moore)

Onboard the carrier, final orders are given as sailors get ready for warWhat they are going to do, most likely, is go to war with Iraq. Keating did not say was when a battle was going to start. It could be hours just hours away. But he feels his sailors are ready. "We have worked for about a year on a very sophisticated, complicated plan. We are going to minimize collateral damage, try to achieve zero non combat casualty," he said. "But when the President says 'go,' look out. Its hammer time." It was a brief stop, but a visit...

As Washington readies its forces for war in Iraq, a quiet military effort is already under way that is aimed at persuading Iraq's senior military officials to refrain from fighting U.S. and British soldiers. As RFE/RL reports, a quick and "clean" conflict may hinge on the success of the United States' psychological-warfare campaign. Washington, 19 March 2003 (RFE/RL) -- Is the pen mightier than the sword? U.S. war planners hope so. Hundreds of thousands of U.S. and British troops and thousands of tanks, jet fighters, bombs, and missiles may be set to strike Iraq in hours in a bid to...

Paris on Wednesday warned of "electricity in the air" as Jacques Chirac and Tony Blair prepared to discuss Iraq at a potentially fraught EU summit starting on Thursday night. France on Wednesday issued a formal complaint over critical comments from British ministers, claiming that the remarks were "unworthy of a friendly nation and a European partner". The action against Iraq, coupled with steadily deteriorating personal relations between the French president and the British prime minister, has left diplomats in Brussels fearing a damaging clash. The Greek government, holder of the EU presidency, says it hopes for constructive talks on Iraq...

BAGHDAD, March 19 (AFP) - With just hours to go before a US ultimatum to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein ran out, Baghdad, cherished by residents as the "city of peace", has become a virtual ghost town bracing for war. The pace of city life sharply slowed down as traffic jams in the usually vibrant capital disappeared, except near gas stations where cars queued for hours to avoid shortages in the event of a war likely to break out after Thursday's deadline expires. Most shops not only locked their metal shutters, but also emptied shelves and put their precious inventory in...

We're not going into this war lightly, or frivolously, or with a feeling of vainglorious invulnerability. And that's for the best. All we can do now is put aside partisan differences, stay alert here at home, and pray for our young men and women who, almost certainly, will soon be in harm's way.      

Tank crews from the Alpha Company 4th Battalion 64 Armor Regiment perform a 'Seminole Indian war dance' before convoying to a position near the Iraqi border Wednesday, March 19, 2003. The commander of the 3rd Infantry Division Maj. Gen. Buford Blount III, ordered his troops to reposition to locations near the border as Predisent Bush's deadline for Saddam to leave Iraq approached.(AP Photo/John Moore)

Just showed live worldwide, engines have been turned on- loaded for bear.2,000 pound JDAM's, 7-8 hours to arrival right on the deadline. (prime time USA)

Just now on MSNBC: Military source says war may not start for at least two more days, largely due to high winds and sandstorms. Developing...

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