7:03am UK, Thursday March 20, 2003

Two-thirds of Iraq's conscript army are ready to surrender without a fight, according to US military sources in Kuwait.

180-iraqi-soldier

File picture of Iraqi soldier

Two army divisions totalling 20,000 troops based in the south of Iraq are set to give themselves up to Allied forces in nearby Kuwait, the sources told Sky News reporter Colin Brazier.

The sources said Iraq's 11th infantry and 51st mechanised divisions were "ready to capitulate".

They said troops from the 6th armoured division were also believed to be considering giving themselves up.

Brazier, with US troops in Kuwait, said recent intelligence briefings had reported the troops were badly motivated.

Asked why the conscripts would surrender, Sky's Foreign Affairs Editor Tim Marshall said: "They are underfed, underpaid and extremely scared."

Sky correspondent David Chater, in Baghdad, said there had been a lot of campaigning by Allied forces to encourage conscripts to give themselves up.

US planes have been dropping leaflets in Iraq urging Iraqi troops to surrender.

Chater said the decision was "no real surprise" - but the crucial matter was whether Saddam Hussein's elite Republican Guard would fight.