In the first major step towards establishing an Iraqi presence among coalition forces in their final surge towards Baghdad, the United States military has begun airlifting Iraqi opposition fighters into southern Iraq.

The airlift, which began on Friday night, will put about 1,000 Iraqi opposition forces into a base in southern Iraq controlled by coalition forces, ABC television reported on Sunday.

The force is under the control of the Iraqi National Congress and its leader Ahmed Chalabi, who will accompany his troops into Iraq.

The opposition forces will also attempt liaison between US-led forces and the Shiite leadership in southern Iraq, help coalition forces clear out remaining paramilitary forces and restore security.

While a Pentagon official was unable to confirm the report, another US website said the US military has moved about 100 to 200 members of the FIF, an affiliate of the INC, to the south so they could evaluate their fighting skills.

To date, allied troops in southern Iraq have been met with a mix of open hostility, mistrust and enthusiasm.

Much of the local, primarily Shiite population continues to live in fear of the regime which is said to have killed more than 200,000 Shiites following the uprisings in 1991 after the Gulf War, the report said.