March 23, 2003

New York region is in extraordinary state of heightened security as US wages war in Iraq; heavily armed police officers are outside prominent buildings, police boats are combing waterfronts and trucks are being inspected at bridges and tunnels; some precautions will cease when war ends, but many will not; in 18 months since World Trade Center attack, significant and lasting changes have been made in region's security landscape and more are in works; detailed look at some security and warning systems in place or being planned; photos; chart (L)

Starting next week, the suggested Sunday newsstand price of The Times in the New York region will increase to $3.50. The suggested price for the Monday through Saturday papers, and for home delivery when ordered directly from The Times, will not change.

Confused scene on outskirts of Basra, largest city in southern Iraq, suggests that American and British advance, for all its initial successes, will face determined combat later on; so many Iraqi soldiers surrender so quickly that American marines hardly know what to do with them; but many others choose to stand and fight; American commanders say their forces are not likely to enter Basra, where they might face street fighting, unless Iraqi security forces and other loyalists of Saddam Hussein try to strike first; photos (M)

Pres Bush's has expressed personal commitment to 'road map' to peace between Israelis and Palestinians, but his administration has never regarded resolution of conflict as top priority or linked it to its wider war against terrorism; Israelis and Palestinians will test commitment after Iraqi war, their acid test being what Bush means when he says that US will expect and welcome their contributions to road map; photo (M)

Mission Early in the War At the start of the war, special forces flew deep into Iraq and seized or blew up specific command posts to prevent officers from ordering the use of chemical and biological weapons, officials said. PAGE B5 Antiwar Protests Continue Demonstrators in New York and other cities across the country and abroad continued to voice outrage over the war. PAGE B11