Last refuge of the loyalists is pounded from the air by US

American forces are preparing for an assault on the Iraqi regime's last stronghold of Tikrit, having pounded the Republican Guard and militia members believed to be gathering there with a series of huge air strikes. They hope not only to capture senior figures from the Iraqi regime, but to gain clues to the whereabouts of Saddam Hussein.

For several days warplanes have attacked military positions in the ousted Iraqi leader's home town, and one eyewitness said US troops had already been airlifted into the area. "We have had coalition forces attacking many areas around Tikrit from the air," said a spokesman for the US Central Command. "You have [Iraqi] elements, remnants... that are coalescing and forming composite units."

The American front line in the direction of Tikrit is just 35 miles from Baghdad, meaning that US troops are still around 60 miles from the last remaining city in Iraq not taken by Allied forces.

"We're just holding this position. They are going to be bringing up the artillery in the next little while," said Sgt William Doherty, who was leading a reconnaissance team on the main road to Tikrit in preparation for an attack. The road was littered with the signs of fierce fighting – burnt-out Iraqi armour lay along the roadside, empty cartridges were scattered across both lanes and there were piles of rubble and debris everywhere.

The inhabitants of Saddam Hussein's birthplace have always enjoyed special benefits and a much higher standard of living than most other Iraqis. It had long been thought that because of the city's loyalty to the dictator, and the presence of many of his extended family, Tikrit would put up some of the most vigorous resistance to the coalition forces.

It had also been believed that one of Saddam's long-time confidants, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, moved missiles into the Tikrit area to bolster the efforts of the Iraqi troops. But this may not be the case.

Yesterday, a stream of thousands of men – most of them of military age – were heading south towards Baghdad on the Tikrit road. Many were holding pieces of white cloth, or even sheets of paper, above their heads to signify their peaceful intent.

Though none would admit to being soldiers, it seemed very likely that many of these men were army deserters who had changed into civilian clothes and were now trying to return to a normal life.

"There are no soldiers in Tikrit, no Fedayeen [militia]. They have gone home. There are no Iraqi soldiers in Iraq. In the last week they have all gone home," said Karim Timmi, a driver, who claimed he was returning to Baghdad to collect his car.

Another man, Jamil Turk, said that people had moved out of the capital when there was fighting, and that they were now moving back. The men were going first, without the women, to ensure that it was safe, he said. Another man said that he had been in Tikrit the day before and that he had seen US paratroops in the area.

After the peaceful handover of Mosul and Kirkuk further north, it is possible that Tikrit will also be secured without a fight. This will probably depend on which elements of the regime have gone to ground there, and to what extent they are able to control any forces not destroyed by the Allied bombing raids on the city.

A battle for Tikrit could be the last big fight in Iraq, but US officials have warned that the fall of the city will not mean that the hostilities will be over.

"If Tikrit falls and is like other cities that we've gone into, and there's an end to any presence of the regime and no more control by the regime and the removal of military forces, that's just one more city. There may be still other areas," said US Brigadier General Vincent Brooks, the US Central Command deputy operations chief. "Tikrit is not the only place where we believe there is a presence of regime forces or regime leaders or regime activities. So there would still be work to be done beyond that."