Iraqi tanks hidden in shops and car parks

IRAQI tanks are hidden “in the shop windows and under car parks” in Basra, which has filled with militia as civilians flee, British soldiers were told yesterday.

Hundreds of refugees were reported to have poured out of Iraq's second biggest city, which has become a British frontline in the South. However, troops at the checkpoints south of the city said they had seen only a handful, who were searched for weapons and military paraphernalia before being allowed on their way.

They painted a grim picture of the military forces amassed in the city.