Troops uncover rocket cache

British forces in southern Iraq found 56 missiles and four launchers, removing a "significant threat" from Saddam Hussein's armoury, military officials said.

The Royal Fusiliers found the Astros short range ballistic missiles near Al Zubayr, a British military source said.

"These posed a significant threat to coalition forces and we have called in our explosives ordnance disposal team," they said.

Also near Al Zubayr, 42 Commando gained control of a fertiliser plant where they discovered chemicals and hollow shells.

"We don't know what the chemicals were yet and we're still trying to establish that," a source at Central Command in Qatar said.

North of Basra, 16 Air Assault Brigade continued the "hearts and minds" campaign by giving a loudspeaker to a mullah which allowed him to broadcast the call to prayer for the first time in nine years.

A military source said: "At Basra itself we are continuing to patrol and raids have continued in the west of the city.

"The International Red Cross says there is not a shortage of food and water in Basra and they have asked the Iraqi ministry of trade to start distributing 3,000 tonnes of food for oil aid which is in a warehouse in the city.

"Fifty per cent of the population now have drinkable water and it was only 60% before the conflict.

"It was pretty dire before and we hope it will improve."

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