At 7 p.m. Wednesday, Saddam Hussein chose to stay in Iraq and not respond to President George W. Bush’s ultimatum that he leave the country. Ninety minutes later, the United States and coalition forces bombed a bunker in which it was believed that Hussein and some of Iraq’s top military officials were located.

Operation Iraqi Freedom is under way.

Almost as soon as the war has begun, it seems that it is near completion. Reports coming out of Kuwait and Iraq late Thursday night claim that 20 percent of Iraq’s elite Republican Guard had surrendered or were in the act of surrendering.

Coalition forces are reported to be on the ground in the northern, western and southern regions of Iraq. “We will accept no outcome but victory,” said President Bush in his address to the nation.

According to Fox News, U.S. intelligence believes that Hussein and his sons, Qusai and Odai, were present in the compound when it was hit.

The United States also started a simultaneous attack in Afghanistan shortly following the Wednesday night bombing of Baghdad.

The president addressed the nation Wednesday night to say that operations had begun to “disarm Iraq and to free its people.”

“On my orders, coalition forces have begun striking selected targets of military importance to undermine Saddam Hussein’s ability to wage war. These are opening stages of what will be a broad and concerted campaign,” he said.

“More than 35 countries are giving crucial support – from the use of naval and air bases, to help with intelligence and logistics, to the deployment of combat units.

“Every nation in this coalition has chosen to bear the duty and share the honor of serving in our common defense,” Bush said. More than 250,000 U.S. soldiers are stationed in the Persian Gulf as part of the initiative. During the past year, nine UTM students and one staff member have been called to service.

The United States saw its first war-related casualties late Thursday night as a CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter crashed in Kuwait. Four Americans and eight Britons were killed in the accident, which was chalked up to mechanical failure, according to Fox News.

Also, according to Reuters News Service, the coalition forces have taken over a large Iraqi airport and the port of Umm Qasr.

Reports are being aired too that scores of Iraqi soldiers have surrendered to coalition forces and that back-channel negotiations are being held with Iraqi leaders.

This is all going on amidst anti-war rallies across the nation and the world. More than 1,300 protesters were arrested in San Francisco and one died after falling off the Golden Gate Bridge.

Demonstrations outside the United States include over 100,000 people in Athens, Greece.