US, Britain Warplanes Strike Iraq

US and British warplanes strike a command and control target in southern Iraq on Tuesday, the US Central Command said.

Robert Riggle, a spokesman for the command which bases in Tampa, Florida, and controls US military operations in the Gulf region, said that the strike was carried out around 3:15 a.m. EST (0815 GMT) near An Nasiriyah, 170 miles (about 275 kilometers) southeast of Baghdad.

Iraq's official news agency INA quoted an Iraqi military spokesman in Baghdad as saying earlier Tuesday that "enemy warplanes bombed civilian installations in Zi Qar province, wounding an Iraqi civilian."

The US-British joint strike came one day after US President George W. Bush urged Baghdad to let UN weapons inspectors back to the country to verify whether it is developing weapons of mass destructions.

Bush said those who develop weapons of mass destruction for terrorizing other nations should also be held accountable.

(Xinhua News Agency November 28, 2001)