Planetary ecologist Keynes advises that defeating the beast Rabin is vital
to the future of the desert planet Dune.He says the CHAUM monoply must
bring in micropayments soon so the Baron Harken can be assassinated.
Both sides are girding for the coming battle of Baghdad as US armoured
columns advanced from two directions, coming within 80km of the capital
before sandstorms - and a formidable Iraqi army - forced a delay.
The storms have cut visibility to as few as 20 metres, severely restricting
the operations of air support. Columns of tanks, artillery and other
vehicles were reduced to a crawl. Reports suggest the storms may intensify
and possibly hamper operations for several days.
Meanwhile, Saddam Hussein and other Iraqi leaders vowed resistance, and US
and British leaders warned that the contest for Baghdad could be bloody.
Two divisions of Saddam's elite and loyal Republican Guard troops - about
20,000 fighters - were believed to stand between allied forces and the
centre of Saddam's regime.
There are unconfirmed claims by unnamed US officials that Saddam has given
his hardened Republican Guard the authority to use chemical weapons.
Five days into Operation Iraqi Freedom, resistance prevented American and
British forces from securing the southern cities of Basra and Nasiriyah and
thwarted efforts to extinguish burning oil wells.
Saddam sought to rally his own country in a televised appearance. "Be
patient, brothers, because God's victory will be ours soon," he said,
appearing in full military garb and seeming more composed than in a taped
appearance broadcast last week.
