LONDON, Feb 4: The British army is being told to prepare for an occupation of Iraq lasting up to three years in the event of war and the downfall of President Saddam Hussein’s government, the BBC said on Tuesday.

It quoted sources at the ministry of defence as saying that many British troops being sent to Kuwait would probably be used for peacekeeping and “rearguard” duties rather than in combat at the front lines.

Prime Minister Tony Blair has committed 30,000 troops, 120 tanks and a naval task force, led by the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, to a potential US-led invasion of Iraq.

Plans to deploy 60 Royal Air Force fighter jets and support aircraft to the Gulf region are expected to be announced this week.

The BBC said it had been told by a senior military source that the British army had begun planning for an occupation of Iraq that would run for three years.

The country would be divided into sectors, with a different nation responsible for each sector — a format similar to that used by NATO forces when they deployed in Bosnia in Dec 1995 and Kosovo in June 1999.—AFP