Iraq slipping into chaos

"On the brink of anarchy," was the identical front page headlines chosen by the left-leaning Guardian and Independent newspapers, both of which opposed Britain's support for the military intervention in Iraq.

Even papers which backed the conflict carried dire warnings about what might happen following deadly clashes between US troops and supporters of firebrand Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr, who is wanted by coalition forces for murder.

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"The spectre of chaos looms large over Iraq," the right-wing Daily Telegraph said in a signed editorial by one of its opinion writers.

"None of these actions even pretends to be concerned with winning hearts or minds," the Guardian said of the US military offensives in an editorial column.

Even the business-based Financial Times, which has taken a far more neutral stance towards the war, stressed that troops and helicopters were not enough alone.

"A purely military response will not get the US out of its hole," it said in its editorial.

The Independent recommended that the June 30 deadline be reconsidered.

"Even without US actions to try and clear the decks in preparation, the deadline was bound to set off a jostling for position among the various factions," it argued.