Operation Iraqi Freedom - April 6, 2003, Day Eighteen

[David]

As fighting continued in greater Baghdad, British forces have entered Basrah. An officer of 3rd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment, part of 16 Air Assault Brigade, reported that British forces had recovered the remains of Ali Hasan al-Majid, the senior Iraqi officer in southern Iraq. The demise of "Chemical Ali" had been reported following an airstrike on a target in Basrah on Saturday. British units reported light resistance within the city, but certain areas remained under the control of Iraqi forces. Three British soldiers were killed in action.

A friendly fire incident occured in northern Iraq. A US aircraft attacked a convoy of Kurdish fighers and US Special Forces personnel near the town of Kalak. 18 of the Kurdish soldiers were killed and 44 were wounded. Among the wounded was Wajeeh Barzani, younger brother of Massoud Barzani, one of the leaders of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). No US personnel were injured in the incident.

Also in northern Iraq, west of Irbil, elements of the US 173rd Airborne Brigade conducted artillery raids against Iraqi positions.

In central Iraq, a search continues for the pilot of a downed US Navy Aircraft. The FA-18C, from the USS Kitty Hawk, was lost over central Iraq on April 2.

As US forces consolidated their positions around Baghdad International Airport, a C-130 landed this evening. It was the first Coalition aircraft to use the newly-captured facility.