- Will Saddam Hussein's forces stand and fight, or bow
to the imperial might of the U.S. and Britain?
-
-
- The fearsome Sudanese nationalist leader known as the
"Mahdi" was a dire threat to his own nation, the neighbouring
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Egypt and the entire Christian world, proclaimed
Britain's Imperial government. The Mahdi's Dervish army had taken Khartoum
by storm and killed the saintly Sir Charles "Chinese" Gordon,
British sirdar, or proconsul, of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan..
-
- So the British Empire sent a "coalition" army
of white troops and Egyptian native units up the Nile under the command
of Lord Kitchener with orders to crush the Mahdi before his calls for freedom
from British imperial rule for Muslim peoples might infect all Africa.
The Dervishes mounted the first major Islamic resistance against European
colonial occupation.
-
- On Sept. 2, 1898, the British Army met the Dervish army
outside Khartoum at Omdurmam. In spite of fanatical bravery by the Dervish
caq's three divisions in the southern region fail to stoutly defend their
positions, it will be shown as a collapse of military morale by the regular
army. If the Iraqi Army fails to defend Amara and Kut on the Euphrates,
or fight for the Shia cities of Kerbala and Najaf, this will mean the road
to Baghdad is wide open. Without major resistance, vanguards of the U.S.
3rd Infantry Division and Marine Expeditionary force should have reached
Baghdad's outskirts by late yesterday or early this morning.
-
- Secret Front
-
- Meanwhile, a top secret front has been opened due west
of Baghdad. U.S. and British forces seized the huge H-3 air base and the
small H-2 base, both built when Britain was colonial ruler of Iraq. Light
armour - notably the U.S. Army's new Striker wheeled vehicles - will be
airlifted in or inserted from Jordan and used to mount a brigade-sized
dash 140 miles east down the main desert road to Baghdad. H-3 could also
be quickly turned into a base for U.S. air operations.
-
- In the campaign to shake the loyalty of the regime's
troops and provoke an army coup, mass defections and surrenders.
-
- If Iraqi forces do indeed fail to resist with vigour,
and begin collapsing, the U.S. may be unable to deploy many new high-tech
shock weapons it planned to use in the war. Iraq was to have been the test
lab for many new, 21st century military technologies. The Pentagon will
be disappointed, but there's always Iran or Syria, both of which are being
named next priority targets by the group of Bush administration hard-liners
linked with Israel's right-wing Likud party. PM Ariel Sharon of Israel
recently called on the U.S. to "march on Tehran" the day after
Baghdad is occupied.
-
- As of now, Saddam Hussein's days appear to be numbered.
He has weeks, at most. The Imperial forces may have no more trouble reaching
Baghdad than Lord Kitchener did taking Khartoum. The conflict between 286
million Americans and 22 million Iraqis, half of whom are in revolt against
their own government, is a war
-
- Eric can be reached by e-mail at <mailto:margolis@foreigncorrespondent.com>margolis@foreigncorrespondent.com.
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