Iraq back on front pages

Events in Iraq occupy all the front pages, for the first time in many weeks.

The Times calls it the army's darkest day, pointing out that the casualties suffered are the heaviest in a single day of combat since the 1991 Gulf War.

The Daily Mail talks of a terrifying guerrilla war.

Its main headline asks: "How many more of our men will be killed?"

'Soft targets'

Robert Fisk, writing in the Independent, thinks the attacks were all too predictable.

The British, he says, are soft targets compared with the Americans, who take many more precautions and are surrounded by tanks and armour.

The Sun reports that - in response to the killings - hundreds of Paratroopers are now hunting down what it calls die-hard 'fiends' loyal to Saddam Hussein.

However, the Daily Telegraph believes the attack on a police post suggests a link to crime.

It points out that the area is one of the main routes for smuggling heroin from Afghanistan.

The Star notes that the attacks came on the same day that Foreign Secretary Jack Straw appeared before a Commons inquiry into the government's case for the war.

"While the anti-war poseurs fight for headlines back home, our boys are still battling for their very lives out there," it comments.

Others disagree. The Mirror says the struggle to find out the truth is undiminished.

Hiding

The Guardian's cartoonist, Steve Bell, draws Mr Straw - giving evidence to MPs - surrounded by coffins draped in Union flags.

The Mirror claims that Saddam Hussein's notorious information minister - who became known as Comical Ali - has been arrested in Baghdad.

The paper says Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf had been hiding in a relative's house since the fall of the regime.

The Mirror gives no source for its story, but it does supply its own quote, tongue-in-cheek, from the man himself, in the customary Sahaf style: "I tell you, I am not in the custody of the infidels. I have not been arrested. Listen to me, I am free."

In a lather

Proposals from the European Union to outlaw sexual discrimination have some papers in a lather.

The Sun warns its readers that - in its words - po-faced pen pushers in Brussels want to ban saucy bra adverts and television shows like Men Behaving Badly.

The Telegraph says that the Sun's own Page Three pictures would also be under threat - though it points out that the plans are still in their infancy.

'Bridesmaid' fashion

The pomp and circumstance of President Putin's state visit get wide coverage.

The Guardian notes that previous guests the government has chosen for the Queen have included Presidents Ceausescu, Mugabe, and Mobutu.

The Times says that the Russian leader arrived late, and its fashion editor castigates Mrs Putin for dressing like a six-year-old bridesmaid.

Hesitant Henman

There is no disguising the anxiety on the sports pages about Tim Henman's faltering display in the first round at Wimbledon.

Play like that again, the Mirror tells him bluntly, and it will all be over.

The Times looks forward to Wednesday's match between Greg Rusedski and Andy Roddick, both of whom can serve at 149mph.

It thoughtfully prints advice to the worms of Wimbledon, warning them to vacate the area before the bombardment begins.