Pentagon: Saddam's family trying to flee Baghdad

Huge explosions rocked the heart of the Iraqi capital tonight, sending huge clouds of smoke over a building in the centre of the city and around the presidential Old Palace compound across the Tigris River.

It was unclear what had been hit.

The blasts – one of the strongest since the air campaign began – shook a hotel where many journalists were staying.

Earlier in the day warplanes and cruise missiles pounded the same compound, targeting a palace used by Saddam Hussein’s younger son son Qusay.

In Washington, Pentagon spokeswoman Tori Clarke said US officials have seen evidence that members of President Saddam Hussein’s family, and the families of senior Iraqi officials, have tried to flee the country.

When pressed for details she would not elaborate.

“We have seen some reports recently, and I’ll leave it at that,” she said.

Allied air strikes have caused ”a very significant weakening” of Iraqi forces, and Iraqi commanders are moving Republican Guard troops around to shore up their strength, the US Defence Department said tonight.

Major General Stanley McChrystal said 3,000 precision-guided bombs were dropped on Iraqi forces over the weekend, more than a third of the total number dropped since the war began.

The bombings have caused “a very significant weakening of the forces,” McChrystal said. “We are seeing some movement of Republican Guard formations as well. ... What we think we’re seeing them do is moving to reinforce other units that have been severely degraded.”

In what could be a prelude to the battle for the Iraqi capital, American forces are doing what one senior Pentagon official called “aggressive armed reconnaissance” in a number of areas rimming the southern approaches to Baghdad.

A number of units have been sent on probing missions forward of fighting positions to assess Iraqi troop strength and cut Iraqi forces off where they can, two Defence Department officials said.

A week of heavy bombing has left some of Iraq’s Republican Guard units surrounding Baghdad at less than half strength, with the Medina and Baghdad divisions the most severely degraded, Pentagon officials said.

The military also was tracking five Guard brigades, including two infantry, seen on the move last week.

It was not exactly clear how they were repositioning themselves, though some Iraqis captured south of Baghdad were reported wearing the arm patches of the Nebuchadnezzar Division, which was supposed to have been guarding cities in the north.

This has led defence officials to believe reinforcements have been sent from the north to bolster the degraded southern Guard units. Officials said other Iraqi units have been seen pulling back, closer to Baghdad.

Intense bombing continued today. Over the weekend, Pentagon officials said that US troops were prepared for a major attack against Saddam’s Guard forces, but the heaviest attack may have to await pressure to build on the Iraqi leader.