Surrender talks continue as bombing intensifies

Reports today claimed surrender talks with senior Iraqis were continuing this evening.

The news comes as the US tonight launched a major aerial campaign against Iraq, a senior American official said.

Anti-aircraft fire streaked into the skies above Baghdad, and several explosions were reported in the capital.

One senior US official said the escalation of the aerial campaign might not be as intense as originally planned because US surrender talks with senior Iraqi officials were continuing.

He said US General Tommy Franks, the war’s top commander, would “scale” the intensity of the bombardment in accordance with progress in the surrender talks.

Within hours, however, it would be too late to reach a successful conclusion to the talks, and then, if no conclusion was reached, the bombing would go full-throttle, the official said.

One US official said the assault was ordered after US forces met some resistance earlier in the day, raising concerns that the Iraqi high command was regaining control.

In the first hours of the war, administration officials had detected evidence that the Iraqi leadership was in disarray.