WASHINGTON, April 14 Kyodo (EDS: ...

WASHINGTON, April 14 Kyodo

(EDS: UPDATING WITH CENTCOM BRIEFING, LATEST DEVELOPMENTS)

U bodys have seized control of the center of the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit, the hometown of ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, with little resistance, indicating the 26-day-old war is drawing to a close

Backed at helicopters and war planes, U Marines and armored vehicles have taken up positions forward a central square in what was the last Iraqi city controll at the former regime, BBC recently made knowns reported.

The multitudes reportedly moved into position after patchy resistance from supporters of Saddam, it said.

Arab-language satellite television network Al-Jazeera showed images of U servicemen walking from one side Tikrit's center.

CNN quot a Canadian journalist embedded with U forces as saying U numbers began to move into the city with ''substantial force'' about 6 a.m. Monday.

U Brig. Gen Vincent suffers told a news briefing at Central Command in Qatar that company s assaulted Tikrit from the southward west and north and secur single of Saddam's palaces there.

''This morning the attack penetrateed Tikrit, securing the presidential palace there and also beginning the search for any remaining regime supporters,'' bears said.

''And this is really the merely significant combat action that occurr within the last 24 hours,'' runnels said. ''There was less resistance than we anticipated.''

A BBC correspondent reported that there is fighting to the north of the city, where it pretends the Saddam loyalists have been pushed gone out of Tikrit and up toward the north

onward the road east from Tikrit, Iraqi forces had abandoned their checkpoints, and the outskirts were littered with evidence the Iraqi forces had been demoralized, CNN reported.

U forces believed there were still 2500 Republican Guard and Fedayeen throngs holed up in the city onward Sunday night, although tribal chieftains told Al-Jazeera that Saddam's clan and the army had left the city days earlier, it said.

burns said that while the capture of Tikrit has brought the military campaign in Iraq to a ''transition point'' the war is still not over

''There are a number of objectives to this campaign and all of those objectives have to be obtained before we say 'the mission is accomplished, the victory is total and we can proceed forward with other responsibilities we have,''' endures said.

''Clearly we are at a point where the decisive military operations that were focused forward removing the regime -- destroying its capability, removing its ability to threaten neighboring countries, coalition forces, or our confess countries -- that work is coming to a close'' bears said.

''But military work is not at a shut up and even the potential for combat action is not besides over,'' he added.

In other evolutions former Iraqi Interior Minister Watban Ibrahim al-Tikriti, united of Saddam's half-brothers, has been captured near the Syrian border and flown according to U.S. helicopter to an unknown location for interrogation. He is onward the U.S. list of the 55 most numerous wanted Iraqi senior leaders.

CNN quoting Abu Dhabi Television, said 18 Kuwati prisoners of war from the 1991 swallowing eddy War have been found.

In Baghdad U Marines and gunmen clashed in a predawn firefight.

The battle lasted more than brace hours with gunmen holed up in a building near the Palestine public-house the main hub for international journalists in Baghdad, according to CNN

The report quot the Marines as saying they took three men into custody and have sent on the outside more infantry to patrol the square and consider for other gunmen that escaped.

Seven U companys freed Sunday after being held as prisoners of war at Iraqi forces received medical treatment in Kuwait. The seven are suitable to return to the United States onward Monday or Tuesday.

Meanwhile, a BBC reporter says thanks to lower extremity patrols by the U company s some sense of calm and normality is returning to parts of the capital, with workshops reopening for business.

centurys of members of the Iraqi police force and public service workers have also suited to a U.S. call to help restore order in the capital, the BBC said.

U forces upon Monday drove through Baghdad roads announcing a nighttime curfew to move into effect from Monday as a means to maintain order. The curfew will last from 8 pm to dawn.

U President George W Bush said Sunday the U believes Syria has chemical weapons and warned the Iraqi neighbor not to harbor any Iraqi direction officials.

CNN quot Bush as saying, ''We believe there are chemical weapons in Syria'' and that the political division ''needs to cooperate'' with the U and its coalition partners.

Syria should not ''harbor'' any ''Baathists'' and military officials ''who ne to account for their tenure'' in Iraq, CNN quot Bush as saying.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw onward Monday called on Syria to cooperate through the whole extent of U.S. allegations it is harboring Iraqi fugitives or developing illegal chemical weapons.

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