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Troops battle at iraq syria border { October 16 2003 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/10/15/sprj.irq.main/index.htmlhttp://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/10/15/sprj.irq.main/index.html
U.S. troops battle at Iraqi-Syrian border
Powell optimistic on latest draft of U.N. resolution
Thursday, October 16, 2003 Posted: 2:30 AM EDT (0630 GMT)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. troops came under fire early Wednesday from a group of people the coalition said was trying to cross illegally into Iraq from Syria. The resulting gun battle left several of the alleged infiltrators dead, coalition officials said.
No U.S. soldiers were reported wounded. But a U.S. observation helicopter was forced down after being hit by small-arms fire.
The clash began about midnight Tuesday (5 p.m. EDT), when ground observers from the Army's 82nd Airborne Division noticed a group of people trying to enter Iraq without going through an official crossing.
U.S. troops, backed by Bradley fighting vehicles and an M-1 tank, attempted to contact the group but were shot at with a rocket-propelled grenade, coalition officials said.
The soldiers returned fire, killing some of the attackers and capturing a small number of others. Those detained did not have the proper paperwork to cross the border, coalition officials said.
During the firefight, gunfire punctured the hydraulic line of an OH-58D Kiowa observation helicopter, necessitating an emergency landing, officials said. The helicopter was returned to a military base, they said.
Threats against Westerners
Coalition military sources said Wednesday they have received specific threats against hotels housing Westerners in Baghdad.
Coalition helicopters circled the Palestine Hotel starting about 7 a.m. (midnight EDT), and Bradley fighting vehicles and U.S. troops were positioned at a checkpoint in front of the hotel.
Coalition contractors, diplomats, international journalists, staff from relief agencies and U.S. soldiers guarding the complex are among the guests at the hotel.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed optimism Wednesday about the passage of the latest version of a U.S. resolution on Iraq that started circulating among U.N. Security Council members Tuesday.
Voting on the resolution was postponed until Thursday at Russian Ambassador Sergey Lavrov's request. Lavrov asked for the delay so the leaders of France, Russia and Germany could further discuss the draft and decide whether to support it. (Full story)
Powell said he talked on the phone throughout the day with leaders of Security Council member countries, including Pakistan, Angola, Britain, China, Russia, France and Germany, some of whom he spoke with numerous times.
He also met in Washington with Solomon Pasi, foreign minister of Bulgaria, another council member country.
"We have been listening to our friends, they have been listening to us," Powell said. "We understand where their positions are; they understand where our firm positions are. That doesn't mean we can't find ways to compromise."
Other developments
• In Baghdad, two mortar rounds were fired late Wednesday into the compound that houses the headquarters of the U.S.-led administration in Iraq. No injuries were reported, coalition officials said. The rounds struck about 9 p.m. (2 p.m. EDT) in an open area near Iraq's massive Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in a complex of downtown Baghdad buildings that once housed Iraqi government offices.
• Senate Republicans have fended off the first effort to convert President Bush's proposed aid package for Iraq into loans, but tougher battles on the issue remain, The Associated Press reported. The Senate voted 57-39 Tuesday to defeat a proposal by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-North Dakota, to eliminate $20.3 billion in grants that Bush wants for retooling Iraq's economy and government. The amendment would have required Iraq to borrow the money, which Bush included in his $87 billion measure for Iraq and Afghanistan. (Full story)
• Top Bush administration officials and congressional Republicans stepped up complaints about news coverage of the war, saying national news outlets ignore good news in favor of stories on violence. "The American people are not getting the full story about the progress we are making in Iraq," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said. (Full story)
• Iraq's new dinar, which replaces the face of Saddam Hussein with images of palm trees and Iraqi historical sites, went into circulation Wednesday. Iraqis will be able to exchange their old money until January 15. (Full story, CNNMoney: Iraqis snap up Saddam-free bank notes)
CNN's Harris Whitbeck, Jane Arraf, John Raedler and Barbara Starr contributed to this report.
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