Al-Sahhaf said: "Don't believe these invaders and these liars. There are none of their troops in Baghdad."

He added that "our heroic forces have killed hundreds" of American soldiers who entered the Dora neighbourhood in the north of the capital.

In smiling, defiant mood, al-Sahhaf said: "We killed them, we made them drink poison and taught them a lesson that history will never forget.

"Baghdad is full of armed citizens ready to support the forces."

He added: "They (the Americans) are losing. I ask you to verify everything they say and not just to repeat the lies of these liars."

SPACE.WIRE