U.S. May Forecast Iraq Bombing Targets

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia —  The United States is considering ways to avoid killing civilians in Iraq, including announcing its bombing targets in advance, the military said today.

At its daily briefing, the military also said a U.S. radar jamming plane crashed on a combat mission this morning, killing both airmen aboard.

Marine Brig. Gen. Richard I. Neal, who conducted the briefing, said the allies have avoided bombing many strategic targets in Baghdad because of the risk to civilians and continue to evaluate and re-evaluate their targets daily.

Each day’s targets are presented to the top U.S. commander, Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, before being approved, he said.

Neal said the bombing will be reviewed routinely, as are all bombing strikes. He repeated allied charges that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has knowingly put civilians at risk.

Asked if the allies might consider warning the Iraqis, either with leaflets or broadcast announcements, before bombing targets in cities, Neal replied:

“That’s one of many options that we’re exploring and we continue to explore. . . . Obviously, we’re not fighting the Iraqi people, and any option that we can pursue that might lessen any civilian casualties or collateral damage, we’re going to pursue that very aggressively.”

He declined to comment specifically on reports that Iraq has been using the al-Rashid Hotel in Baghdad, where many foreigners are housed, as a military communications center.

“But suffice to say that he has extensive command and control, and communication, facilities integrated very much within the Baghdad civilian structure,” Neal said.