Just outside Nassiriyah, traffic along the U.S. military supply route — flatbeds, Humvees and other vehicles — was so heavy it sometimes came to a standstill.
The massive jam extended back to the Kuwait border, where much of the allied forces waited Saturday in long columns of vehicles to cross into Iraq.
Soldiers eyed the gridlock, which could present a lethal situation if hostile forces opened fire.
"It would be tragic if the Iraqis had some artillery," said 2nd Lt. Sarah Skinner of Vassar, Mich., a platoon leader.
A young Bedouin dressed in traditional black robes blew a kiss to the convoy as it crawled north.
The roadside was dotted with Iraqi tanks blackened by direct hits on their dirt bunkers. White flags flew over some deserted, dilapidated barracks, including one where a white cloth had been hung over a picture of Saddam Hussein.
