By Mike Baker BBC Monitoring Unit correspondent

US says TV is part of Iraq's "command and control capability"

Iraqi state television and radio has struggled to broadcast throughout the day following bombing attacks on Baghdad on Tuesday night.

Although the UK Defence Secretary, Geoff Hoon, has insisted there was "no direct attempt to take Iraqi TV off the air", its broadcasts have been severely interrupted and for long periods have stopped altogether.

From the early hours of Wednesday, both the terrestrial and the satellite television services were off air.

The domestic, terrestrial service did return later, but apparently on a weaker signal. It may have been broadcast from a mobile transmitter.

The satellite service, which had been broadcasting repeats of Saddam Hussein's most recent address, was off air for longer.

It returned briefly mid-morning, carrying archive footage of old news conferences. It was also able to run screen captions giving war news, including Iraqi claims that several coalition tanks had been destroyed, and soldiers killed, near Basra.

Patriotic programme

However, within a couple of hours the signal became intermittent and then stopped altogether for several hours. It did return by mid-afternoon.

Its coverage included the usual collage of shots of Saddam Hussein in heroic poses and archive footage of anti-war protests from around the world.

There was also a news bulletin read by an announcer wearing the khaki uniform adopted by its staff since the war began.

TV broadcasts let the population know the Iraqi leadership is still in control

The main state radio station was heard for a while but only on a weak short-wave signal. It mainly broadcast patriotic songs and prayers.

Although few Iraqis have access to satellite television services, many do rely on television and radio for information and news. The continued broadcasts will be seen by many as an indication that the regime is still in control.

It is thought Iraqi civilians may have access to foreign radio services such as the BBC, but few will be able to receive pan-Arab satellite news stations like al-Jazeera and Abu Dhabi TV.

These stations frequently carry live news conferences given by Iraqi officials, yet the Iraqi TV stations rarely show these, giving only recorded, edited highlights.

Rumsfeld disappointment

Nevertheless, it would appear that Iraq's ability to use its state broadcast system to rally public opinion has been badly affected.

But by contingency planning, including the use of mobile transmitters and makeshift studios, Iraqi broadcasters are maintaining a limited service.

This will disappoint the US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld who, earlier this week, had spoken of his regret that Iraq's ability to broadcast had not been stopped sooner.

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.