JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: All the heavy coalition bombing appears to be taking a toll on Iraqi forces in northern Iraq. For the second straight day, aircraft, including U.S. Navy F-14s, hit an Iraqi-held ridge near the city of Kalak, east of Mosul. CNN's Ben Wedeman reports that the latest airstrikes convinced a handful of Iraqi soldiers to give themselves up.</s>BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CAIRO BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): For weeks, we've been watching Iraqi soldiers manning their front line positions. And now, we finally met some. Five Shiite recruits from southern Iraq, deserters, surprisingly young men afraid to show their faces on camera. Afraid to tell us their names for fear of retribution against their families. After almost a week of hellish coalition air bombardment, they abandoned their positions just before sunrise Monday and fled to Kurdish-controlled territory. "We ran away from the bombing," says one. "For six days we were bombed. For six days we couldn't sleep. We had to save our lives." After seeing too many comrades killed and wounded, they decided enough was enough. This soldier told me more troops would like to flee, but government execution squads have strict orders to kill all would-be deserters. Their officers confiscated their radios, so they didn't know U.S. and British forces had invaded their country. But the sudden, intense bombing said it all. I asked if they had received training in chemical warfare. "No," replied one, "but we were recently given gas masks." These men will be handed over to the Red Cross and will have to keep their faces hidden until this conflict ends. Ben Wedeman, CNN, Kalak, northern Iraq.</s>WOODRUFF: Ben Wedeman has been reporting from northern Iraq virtually since the start of this conflict. Our reporters who are so- called embedded with the troops, we've shown many Americans and we've shown many British journalists who are risking their lives to do the job. When we come back, our Daryn Kagan will introduce you to Arab journalists also embedded with American forces. Their story when we return.
Iraqi-Held Ridge Hit Hard By Airstrikes