16 Killed In U.S. Helicopter Crash
Coalition forces suffered their first casualties when a Marine helicopter crashed in Kuwait, killing all 12 Britons and four Americans on board.
Military officials said the crash of the CH-46 Sea Knight occurred Friday morning in Kuwait about nine miles from the border with Iraq.
The cause of the crash was under investigation, but officials said hostile fire had not been reported in the area.
The helicopter was assigned to the First Marine Expeditionary Force.
The Marines use the Sea Knight, a bus-like helicopter with two large rotors, to fly troops from ships at sea or base camps to forward positions.
Meanwhile, the war to disarm Saddam Hussein and liberate Iraq gained momentum Thursday as U.S. forces fired missiles into Baghdad for a second straight night and ground troops crossed into Iraq from Kuwait.
Loud explosions were heard Thursday night in Basra, Iraq's second largest city, reports CBS News Correspondent Scott Pelley, who entered southern Iraq with the early U.S. ground forces.
But the massive "shock and awe" phase of the American-led invasion that's been expected still has not begun.
In other major developments:
CBS News National Security Correspondent David Martin reports the war was supposed to begin with an air campaign, but the battle plan has been turned on its head, and now the ground campaign is coming first.
The plan started changing last night when the U.S. thought it saw a chance to kill Saddam Hussein.
Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld hinted that talks with Iraqi military elements, including some in the elite Republican Guard, may have been behind a delayed start to a planned massive aerial assault.
He said there would be "no need for a broader conflict" if Iraqi leaders surrender.
The U.S. is still assessing damage to an Iraqi leadership bunker struck by U.S. missiles Wednesday night. Not known for certain is whether Saddam was in the bunker. He, or someone who looks like him, has been shown on Iraqi television twice since the war started.
No one knows if Saddam is gone or just gone into hiding. But intelligence officials say if he is alive, he no longer seems to be in iron-fisted control of his regime, which will make it easier for other senior leaders to surrender.
In an opening to ground action, U.S. and British Marines entered southern Iraq Thursday and the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division attacked Iraqi troops with howitzers and multiple launch rocket systems, firing more than 100 shells.
U.S. and British forces seized the border town of Umm Qasr.
U.S. forces entering southern Iraq saw oil wells on fire from the direction of Iraq's petroleum center Basra.
Small numbers of U.S. and British special forces were operating surreptitiously in other parts of the country and U.S. war planes stepped up attacks on Iraqi air defenses in the north and south in hopes of making it easier and safer for coalition aircraft when the massive aerial assault begins, officials said.
Officials said Thursday's strikes involved a smaller number of Tomahawks than Wednesday's opening volley, which numbered approximately 40. The Red Cross confirmed one person was killed and 14 injured in the initial U.S. attack.
Thursday's attack included Tomahawk cruise missiles fired by British ships as well as American ships, one official said.
Pentagon officials said the early ground operations were "preparing the battlefield," laying the groundwork for future operations.
For a second night, missiles hit Baghdad, where the sky was filled with anti-aircraft fire and loud detonations echoed through the city. The main presidential palace and the ministry of planning were struck.
Meanwhile, F-14 and F-18 jets took off from the USS Theodore Roosevelt in the eastern Mediterranean, armed with missiles and bombs.
Iraqi forces fired back on Thursday, aiming missiles at U.S. troops in Kuwait. The Kuwaiti Defense Ministry said six missiles were fired; two of them Scuds. If true, that would have political implications: Iraq is not supposed to have Scuds, and if it had them it would strengthen the U.S. case for war to disarm Saddam.
There was no evidence chemical weapons were being used, but U.S. soldiers – and reporters – donned gas masks and headed to bunkers just in case.
At Kuwait's border with Iraq, Pelley said helicopters fired several missiles at Iraqi positions. That came after several skirmishes along the border during the day, including artillery and tank fire.
Much of the offensive seemed intended to probe Iraqi defenses and take out its observation posts along the border. Most of the strikes were launched with artillery that rolled like thunder for an hour at a time, big 155-mim Howitzers and devastating multiple-launch rockets that slammed into targets with awesome power.
In his first public appearance since the war began, President Bush did not assess the results nor did he take questions about the whereabouts of Saddam.
"There's no question we've sent the finest of our citizens into harm's way," he said. "They performed with great skill and great bravery."
Behind the scenes, White House officials said early reports from the battlefield were encouraging, raising hopes that senior Iraqi leaders may have been captured or killed, perhaps even Saddam.
"Things are going very well," said Rumsfeld.
In an unusual diplomatic move, the Bush administration called Thursday for the expulsion of Iraqi diplomats by all countries that recognize and deal with the government in Baghdad.
State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the diplomats represented a "corrupt and ruthless regime" and cited Iraq's refusal to disarm.
The administration also said it was seizing $1.74 billion in Iraqi assets already frozen in the United States, saying it will use the money for humanitarian purposes in Iraq.
The State Department temporarily closed embassies and consulates in about 15 countries. The decision was based on a judgment of the security situation in those countries by the senior American diplomats there.
Around the world, reactions to the onset of military action varied dramatically. Both Russia and China demanded an immediate halt to the hostilities. Support for Washington came from allies Britain and Japan, among others.
There were anti-war protests throughout the world, including in the United States. In San Francisco, 350 demonstrators were arrested.