WASHINGTON – The Pentagon is sending its top war strategists to the Persian Gulf in the latest sign that an invasion of Iraq could be weeks away, officials said yesterday.
About 1,000 members of the battle staff of U.S. Central Command were ordered earlier this week to deploy to a high-tech mobile command center in Qatar, which is expected to become the headquarters for an assault on Iraq, a military spokesman said.
The U.S. force in the Persian Gulf is expected to swell from 65,000 to 90,000 troops by the end of the week – and another 70,000 troops are to be sent to the region by Jan. 31.
Also yesterday, Britain announced the call-up of 1,500 reservists – part of a force of 50,000 expected to be sent to the Gulf.
And French president Jacques Chirac yesterday asked troops “to be ready for all possibilities” with regard to Iraq. France has taken a hard line against unilateral U.S. action against Saddam Hussein, and Paris still wants U.N. backing for a war.