US 'psy-ops' division rolls out its weapons of mass persuasion

Call it the Airwaves War. The United States is engaged in an effort more comprehensive than ever seen before to use the power of broadcast to soften its enemy in Iraq and to soothe its population at home.

Spearheading the electronic propaganda campaign are specially converted US Air Force cargo planes flying close to the Kuwait-Iraq border, transmitting a mixture of Arabic and Western music and spoken announcements to the citizens and troops of Iraq, urging them not to fight and how to surrender.

At the same time, the Pentagon is striving to interfere with Baghdad's broadcast capabilities. Officials said yesterday that during the first strike, US munitions destroyed a television station in western Iraq while electronic jamming had silenced an Iraqi satellite television station. Even more startlingly, the US military reportedly succeeded, if only for a few moments, to hijack the main state radio frequency in Baghdad to announce that Saddam Hussein's administration was under attack.

"This is the day you have been waiting for," it said in a brief message before going silent. The airwaves assault is all part of an intense psychological operation, known as "psy-ops", intended to persuade the people and soldiers of Iraq to abandon their president and offer no resistance to the ground invasion when it begins. A more subtle operation is under way, meanwhile, to project images of overwhelming American power to audiences at home. While newspaper reporters struggle with all manner of restrictions on their movements and black-out periods preventing use of satellite phones, the Pentagon has given front-row seats to US television teams and therefore to the viewers back home.

It has been especially obliging to CNN. Commanders, for example, allowed one of its correspondents to report live from one of the aircraft carriers involved in the first assaults on Wednesday night. Better than that, they arranged for the pilot of one bomber to flash a grinning thumbs-up sign to the CNN camera while he revved his jets on deck. We at home were meant to feel fuzzy reassurance.

The flying radio stations patrolling Iraq's southern border are most critical to the military push. Commando Solo is a fleet of six converted C-130 cargo carriers that lower huge circular aerials from their bellies amplifying the 10,000-watt broadcasts. The crew plays hour-long tapes with the music as well as periodic messages on how to surrender safely and avoid the wrath of advancing troops.

The planes are America's weapons of mass persuasion. They take off shortly after dusk, the clear intention to broadcast during Iraq's prime time.

"We are trying to convey information to the people of Iraq, whether it be to the civilian population, the military or even anyone who has any idea about weapons of mass destruction," Army Staff Sergeant Noble remarked.

The radio transmissions are backed up by an intense leaflet-dropping campaign. By yesterday, about 17 million leaflets had been dispersed over Iraqi territory, offering detailed information on how to signal surrender to advancing troops. Iraq's soldiers are advised, for example, to park their vehicles in a square and walk a mile away from them where they should await instructions.

Warnings printed on the leaflets include one that says: "Attacking coalition aircraft invites your destruction. Do not risk your life and the lives of your comrades. Leave now and go home. Watch your children learn, grow and prosper."

The US military has a long tradition of radio psy-ops. Similar broadcasts were used in the campaign in Afghanistan to urge citizens to help to unearth Taliban and al-Qa'ida factions. They have been used in almost every conflict since the Vietnam War.

On a different tack, America has attempted to cosy up to Al-Jazeera, the Arab satellite network based in Qatar, that only a short while ago American officials scorned as "All Osama All the Time" – a reference to its willingness to broadcast messages by Osama bin Laden.

Now, Al-Jazeera is regarded as a crucial tool in influencing opinion in all of the Middle East, including in Iraq where some residents have illegal satellite dishes. The network, with an audience of 47 million, has seven correspondents in Baghdad and has arrangements with several American networks to supply live video from the Iraq capital as the armed invasion unfolds.

The Pentagon has meanwhile given Al-Jazeera privileged access to the military operations. At the same time, it has been granted access to the most senior US figures, including Donald Rumsfeld, the Defence Secretary, and Condoleezza Rice, the National Security Adviser.

In America, all the main networks plan to scrap their normal entertainment programming in prime time, at least for the first few days of military action.