DRIVING night and day, more than 70 American tanks and 60 armoured troop carriers raced 700 miles across rough desert terrain, a bold flanking movement that placed US forces less than a day's march from Baghdad yesterday.

In one of the fastest penetrations of hostile territory ever recorded, the US 3rd Infantry division, 2nd Brigade covered 228 miles in less than 40 hours to take fighting positions near the halfway mark to Baghdad.