President Bush last night gave Saddam 48 hours to leave Iraq or face military conflict.

In a televised address from the White House, the American leader spoke directly to the Iraqi people: "The tyrant will soon be gone. The day of your liberation is near."

In a rebuke to the diplomats in New York, president Bush said: "A broad coalition is now gathering to enforce the just demands of the world. The United Nations security council has not lived up to its responsibilities. So we will rise to ours."

Members of the Iraqi forces were told: "If war comes, do not fight for a dying regime that is not worth your own life...In any conflict, your fate will depend on your actions.

"Do not destroy oil wells, a source of wealth that belongs to the Iraqi people. Do not obey any command to use weapons of mass destruction against anyone, including the Iraqi people. War crimes will be prosecuted. War criminals will be punished."