Iraq Descends into Violence and Chaos

A suicide bomber on Thursday night attacked US soldiers in Baghdad killing and wounding an unknown number of marines. The attack by a lone bomber, who walked up to a checkpoint near Saddam City, the Shia suburb, came at the end of a day in which US forces fought several fierce battles in Baghdad to extinguish residual resistance by forces loyal to Mr Hussein.

The dramatic disintegration of the regime, which began on Tuesday with the jubilant seizure of central Baghdad, continued when Kurdish guerrillas captured the important northern oilfield city of Kirkuk, which fell without a fight.

But the dangerous lawlessness now confronting US and British forces was brutally underscored by renewed fighting in Baghdad, widespread looting and the murder in the southern city of Najaf of a prominent Shia leader who had supported the invasion by coalition forces.

US troops, confronting irregular fighters in civilian clothes, were ordered to shoot anyone acting suspiciously. In Baghdad a number of innocent civilians had were shot.

Major-General Gene Renuart, director of operations at central command for Iraq, said the military operation was "a long way from completion".

"Baghdad is still an ugly place - there are many parts of the city that have not been secured," he said.

The developments, which punctured the mood of optimism of the previous 24 hours, deepened concerns that US and British forces could struggle to establish order and install a new administration for the country.

Kofi Annan, the United Nations secretary general, said Iraqis had paid a "high price" for the overthrow of Mr Hussein. "It appears there is no functioning government in Iraq at the moment," he said. "Obviously law and order must be a major concern."

President George W. Bush and Tony Blair, the UK prime minister, sought to reassure Iraqis with a joint television broadcast to the country.

"Our only enemy is Saddam's brutal regime, and that regime is your enemy as well," said Mr Bush. "We will help you build a peaceful and representative government that protects the rights of all citizens. And then our military forces will leave."

But even the big military advance of the day in Kirkuk was tinged with concern. The city was captured by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, apparently acting ahead of a planned joint move with US troops and the KDP, another Kurdish guerrilla force. Kirkuk's seizure prompted thousands of Kurds to race towards the city in a bid to reclaim property taken from them by the old regime.

The government in neighbouring Turkey, which has repeatedly warned it could not accept unilateral Kurdish control of Kirkuk and the surrounding oilfields, immediately demanded - and won - assurances from Washington that US forces would take over control of the city.

"We've been in contact with officials in Turkey as well as free Iraqis in the north and I think it is fair to say that American forces will be in control of Kirkuk," said Ari Fleischer, the White House spokesman. He confirmed Turkish military observers would be allowed to enter Kirkuk to monitor developments.

Senior Turkish officials said it would be "unacceptable" for Kurdish fighters to remain in the city. Abdullah Gul, foreign minister, added that the US had promised to send in troops to secure the city and that Turkish military observers would enter with them.

In the holy Shia Muslim city of Najaf, US plans to build links with the majority Shia population suffered a potential setback when a mob killed Abdelmajid al-Khoi, a Shia scholar who recently returned from exile in London, and an aide.

It was not clear what caused the confrontation in the Imam Ali mosque, one of the holiest Shia shrines. But Mr Khoi, son of a former pre-eminent leader of the Iraqi Shia, was understood to be unpopular with Iranian-backed Iraqi Shia opposition groups.

His death underlined the problems facing US and British efforts to put together a credible civil administration to succeed Saddam's regime.

The composition and date of a meeting of opposition groups originally due to be held the weekend has yet to be finalised.

In Baghdad, the fiercest fight was a four-hour battle around the Imam al-Adham mosque, in the east of the city, where marines suffered one death and 20 injured. A line of limousines nearby prompted reports that members of Mr Hussein's regime had been meeting there but this was not confirmed.

Senior Turkish officials said it would be "unacceptable" for Kurdish fighters to remain in the city. Abdullah Gul, foreign minister, added that the US had promised to send in troops to secure the city and that Turkish military observers would enter with them.

Humanitarian crisis

Aid agencies expressed concerns that a humanitarian crisis could develop in the power-vacuum left by the fall of Mr Hussein's regime. The International Committee of the Red Cross, which temporarily halted its work in Baghdad after a Canadian member of its staff was killed in crossfire on Tuesday, warned that more must be done to stabilise the country.

"There has to be more assistance for the hospitals who are working tremendously in a very difficult situation. The water issue is another priority,'' said Muin Kassis, a spokesman for the ICRD in Jordan.

The ICRC said a Baghdad hospital had been ransacked by an armed gang on Thursday and street violence and looting had forced the closure of others.

Nada Doumani, ICRC spokeswoman in Geneva, said the Al Kindi hospital near the city centre had been attacked by armed looters who stripped it of everything, including beds, electrical fittings and medical equipment.

The spokeswoman said the situation was so bad and that people were not daring to go to hospital. "Small hospitals have closed their doors and big hospitals are inaccessible," she said.

The US is pushing ahead with efforts to prepare for the creation of an interim authority that will eventually assume civil power from the military and prepare for elections.

US officials are planning next week to chair a meeting attended both by members of the exile opposition Iraqi National Council and by selected local community leaders. The leader of the INC, Ahmed Chalabi is already in southern Iraq. However, the Shia Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, which is supported by Iran, is not expected to attend, according to a statement from the group's London office.

Jacques Chirac, French president and one of the main opponents to the war, on Thursday hailed the fall of Mr Hussein but said full sovereignty must be returned to Iraq as soon as possible and "with the legitimacy of the United Nations''.

"It is now necessary to create the conditions that will give the Iraqi people its dignity in refound freedom,'' he added.

US president George W. Bush earlier this week promised a "vital role" for the UN in post-war Iraq but was not specific about what this would mean.