Two thirds of the 800 strike sorties launched by coalition warplanes on Tuesday targeted Republican Guard divisions, and most of the remainder were in support of US and British ground forces elsewere in the country, a US defense official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"They are being attacked from the air. They're being pressured from the ground. And in good time, they won't be there," said US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

The five Republican Guard divisions defending the capital were dispersed in defensive positions and have not retreated in the face of US assaults, General Richard Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said.

But he said the Medina, Hammurabi, Baghdad and the Al Nida Republican Guard divisions were "continuously being struck by both our ground and air forces, significantly degrading their combat capability."

The Adnan Republican Guard Division that was defending Tikrit, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's hometown, has moved farther south toward Baghdad and the Nebuchadnezzar Division has moved at least two brigades from the north to reinforce divisions south of the capital.

"They have moved some of the units around trying to reinforce, but some of them have been degraded to pretty low percentages of combat capability, below 50 percent in, I think, at least two cases, and we continue to work on them," he said.

The Republican Guard divisions are blocking the path to Baghdad of the US Army's Third Infantry Division, the 1st Marine Division and the army's 101st Airborne Division, which were maneuvering south of the city.

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