First U.S. Air Raids on Baghdad during Daytime

In order to make their way to Baghdad, a total of 3,000 missiles by U.S and British coalition forces have hit Iraq for the latest three consecutive days, including President Saddam Hussein`s sprawling compounds in the central Baghdad in the early morning of April 1.

As a result, the forces of some units of Iraqi Republican Guard were decreased by half and the rest of the units are losing the fighting power, U.S forces claimed.

In the two other cities of strategic importance, Hindiya and Hyla, 80 kilometers south of Baghdad, each of the U.S. 3rd Army Division and the 1st Marine Division had a fierce battle with Republican Guard. In the southern city, Najaf, the U.S forces fired on a van, claiming the lives of five children and five women, on March 31, according to the Washington Post. Seven American soldiers died.

U.S Central Command said that they fired on the van in self-defense as the vehicle came near to the checkpoint of the American 3rd Infantry despite the warning shots.

The coalition forces mistakenly bombarded civilian residence of the eastern Baghdad, during their air strikes, for the first time since the beginning of the war, killing six and injuring a number of civilians.

On the night of March 29, a missile by the coalition forces hit a farm area, southeast of Baghdad, leaving 20 civilians dead and 10 wounded, some witnesses said. Such accidental explosions are fueling Arab anger.

About 2,000 Palestinians who live in Syria and Lebanon, have entered Iraq via Syria in order to join the war against the U.S., a Japanese press said.

Eun-Taek Hong euntack@donga.com