Here Comes The War Deadline
Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has firmly rejected President Bush's ultimatum to leave Iraq with his sons by 8 p.m. Wednesday or face a U.S.-led invasion.
Saddam appeared on Iraqi television Tuesday in military uniform - for the first time since the 1991 Gulf War - and warned his commanders to prepare for battle.
At the White House, spokesman Ari Fleischer said President Bush still hopes Saddam will take the ultimatum seriously, adding, "This is the latest mistake Iraq could make. It would be Saddam's final mistake."
Fleischer would not rule out a U.S. attack before the 48-hour clock of the deadline set on Monday runs out Wednesday night. "Saddam Hussein has to figure out what this means," he said.
Here are the day's key developments:
At the State Department, Secretary of State Colin Powell said 30 nations had joined the administration's "coalition of the willing," and that another 15 had quietly pledged support.
At least two of the 30 nations, Spain and the Netherlands, have explicitly ruled out the use of troops to invade Iraq, though. Another, Japan, was identified as only a post-conflict member of the coalition.
State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said some of the countries "may put troops on the ground" and others may take on roles such as assisting in a defense against the use of chemical and biological weapons.
President Bush reached out Tuesday to the leaders of Russia and China, two countries that have opposed using force against Saddam. But Presidents Vladimir Putin and Hu Jintao told Mr. Bush they still preferred a U.N.-brokered solution.
A CBS News poll released Tuesday found that 72 percent of Americans back the president's issuance of a 48-hour ultimatum for Saddam to leave Iraq.
But Saddam indicated he isn't going anywhere.
Iraq "doesn't choose its leaders by decree from Washington, London or Tel Aviv," the regime's leadership said after Saddam met with his high command.
Iraq's foreign minister Naji Sabri told reporters it was "Bush who should go into exile, because it is Mr. Bush who is endangering the whole world."
That show of support for Saddam was echoed in demonstrations on the streets of the capital, organized as usual, by the authorities.
"We are very strong, strongest with our president Saddam Hussein," said one demonstrator.
As the American deadline approaches, CBS News Correspondent Lara Logan reports Baghdad is fast becoming a ghost town. The locks are on, shutters coming down; some are even welding their shop doors closed, afraid of what will follow the bombing.
The city's commercial heart has almost stopped beating. People have either fled the city or are staying home in anticipation of the bombing.
At the French Embassy the ambassador closed the gates as he left; at the Greek Embassy, staff said emotional goodbyes.
But the white U.N. plane taking off from Saddam International Airport, carrying away the last weapons inspectors was perhaps the strongest signal here that diplomacy is definitely over and war is on its way.
For the U.S. military, with 250,000 troops in the Persian Gulf, the planning stage of the showdown with Saddam is just about over, and concern is rapidly shifting to the order of battle.
U.S. officials say so many Iraqi army units seem ready to surrender it is possible American ground forces will not encounter any serious resistance until they come up against the Republican Guard divisions defending Baghdad.
As a result, CBS News National Security Correspondent David Martin reports the air war and ground war are now likely to start within hours of each other since there is no longer a need for four or five days of bombing before the main invasion forces goes in.
U.S. marines and British troops will seize the southern city of Basra while the main invasion force advances on Baghdad in two prongs – the marines from the east and the army from the south in a combination armored thrust and helicopter assault. The closer they get to Baghdad the more likely they are to encounter Republican Guard units armed with chemical weapons.
Special operations forces and paratroopers will attempt to secure the oilfields in both the north and south where there are continuing signs the Iraqis are preparing to blow them up. More special operations forces will search the western and southern deserts for scud missiles aimed at Israel or the American base camps in Kuwait.
Airborne troops will descend on northern Iraq, and Turkey now appears willing to allow both Air Force and the two aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean to fly strikes through Turkish airspace.
Three more aircraft carriers are in the Persian Gulf and 30 ships armed with cruise missiles are in the Gulf and the Red Sea. More than 700 Air Force planes are at bases throughout the region.
But for two days now, U.S. aircraft have not conducted any strikes in the no-fly zones to avoid any incidents that might further complicate British Prime Minister Tony Blair's political troubles for his support of Mr. Bush.
With Saddam and his sons vowing to fight, a coup now seems the only chance to avoid war. But U.S. intelligence doesn't think there will be a coup until those close to Saddam fear the Americans more than they fear him – and that's not likely to happen until the shooting starts.
The Bush administration Tuesday also announced a series of steps at home to protect against terrorist attacks.
The plan, dubbed "Operation Liberty Shield," heightens security at the nation's borders, at airports, seaports and railways, at nuclear and chemical plans and elements of the nation's food supply and distribution system. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said governors are being asked to deploy National Guard troops or extra state police to help.