IRAQ: The US military says it has launched the biggest air assault on Iraq since its invasion in 2003, with American and Iraqi troops targeting insurgents near Samarra, the city that has come to symbolise the threat of civil war.
A military statement yesterday said more than 50 aircraft and 1,500 US and Iraqi troops using more than 200 vehicles had been deployed in an offensive intended to clear a "suspected insurgent operating area" northeast of Samarra.
It said the air assault was the largest since March 2003, but it was not immediately clear whether US aircraft had been used to bomb targets or mainly to transport troops. It was also not clear how many Iraqi troops were involved or if there had been resistance, although residents in the Samarra area said large explosions could be heard.
Launched on the eve of the third anniversary of the invasion, yesterday's offensive comes at a time when American support for the war in Iraq is at a new low, with one opinion poll showing only 30 per cent approval of President George Bush's handling of the war.
The White House has been anxious to show that it is in control of events in Iraq and that Iraqi forces can be relied on as ground troops - which would bolster the prospects for an eventual American withdrawal.
The military assault also coincided with the swearing in of the new Iraqi parliament.
The offensive, code-named Operation Swarmer, was expected to last several days. It appeared to be concentrated on four villages north of the city, where there are hideouts of Arab fighters and Iraqi insurgents.
"Unknown gunmen exist in this area, killing and kidnapping policemen, soldiers and civilians," Waaqas al-Juwanya, spokesman for Iraq's joint co-ordination centre in nearby Dowr, said.
A US statement emphasised the role played by Iraqi forces on the ground. It said air power was used to support and deliver troops from the Iraqi army's 4th division, the Rakkasans from 1st and 3rd battalions, 187th infantry regiment and the hunters from 2nd Squadron, 9th cavalry regiment to the area.
The statement said a number of enemy weapons caches had been captured, containing artillery shells, explosives, materials to make improvised explosive devices and military uniforms.
Samarra, 96km (60 miles) north of Baghdad, has become a symbol of sectarian violence. The bombing last month of the city's Golden Mosque - one of the most important Shia shrines - triggered a series of sectarian attacks across the country which have left hundreds dead.
In Baghdad, meanwhile, the first session of the Iraqi parliament adjourned within half an hour because there was no agreement over the election of a speaker. Bickering continued as Adnan Pachachi, a senior politician administering the oath in the absence of a speaker, spoke of a country in crisis.
"We have to prove to the world that a civil war is not and will not take place among our people," he said. "The danger is still looming and the enemies are ready for us because they do not like to see a united, strong, stable Iraq."
Interrupting Mr Pachachi, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, a senior Shia leader, said his remarks were inappropriate because of their political nature. During the swearing-in, some MPs strayed from the official text of the oath but judicial officials decided the wording was acceptable.
Ibrahim al-Jaafari, the outgoing Shia prime minister, has been criticised for failing to curb violence.