Two British Military Police soldiers look
on at U.S.
Marines aboard an armored personnel carrier
crossing the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ),
which
separates Kuwait and Iraq, heading to
the town
of Umm Qasr Friday, March 21, 2003. Allied
forces
combat units rumbled across the desert
into Iraq
from the south Friday, and bombed limited
targets
in Baghdad. (AP Photo/Laurent Rebours) |
KUWAIT CITY - U.S. Marines have captured
the strategic port in the southern Iraqi city of Umm Qasr but are still
encountering pockets of resistance, U.S. military sources said Friday.
"We've taken most of the port, and at least
a couple of hundred prisoners," a U.S. military official said, speaking
on condition of anonymity. "We're not done securing it at this time."
The official said the Marines entered Umm
Qasr early Friday.
Umm Qasr, located along the Kuwait border,
would give U.S. and British forces access to a port for military and humanitarian
supplies and hasten the end of Iraqi resistance in the south.
The ground attack on Umm Qasr followed
a night of intense shelling by U.S. and British forces in the area. |
