GULF WATCH: Day 48 : A Daily Briefing Paper On Developments In The Crisis : Diplomatic Front:

The Bush Administration criticized Jordan for hosting a weekend conference of Arab radicals who threatened terrorist attacks against the United States in the event of an armed conflict with Iraq. The State Department said it was “surprised and dismayed” that the conference had taken place.

The Pentagon assigned three cargo planes to carry about 420 foreign refugees from Iraq back to their homes in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

Military Front:

The number of Iraqi troops in Kuwait has grown to 360,000 from about 265,000 two weeks ago, according to the Pentagon. The number of Iraqi tanks has jumped to 2,800 from about 2,200. Despite the increases, U.S. officials said Iraq has been pulling tanks and artillery back from the front lines, and its current combat “posture” appears defensive in nature.

Gen. Merrill A. McPeak is the preferred candidate to replace Gen. Michael J. Dugan as Air Force chief of staff, subject to presidential approval. Dugan was fired after discussing the Pentagon’s Persian Gulf military strategy with reporters.

Trade Front:

A crew from the guided missile cruiser Biddle stopped and boarded a Soviet cargo ship in the Red Sea to determine if it was carrying cargo in violation of the embargo, U.S. officials said. The ship was allowed to proceed to the Jordanian port of Aqaba.

The five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council were reported to have worked out an agreement to impose an air embargo against Iraq. In Paris, the nine-member Western European Union endorsed an air blockade and agreed to coordinate air and ground forces in the Middle East.

Economic Front:

Jordan, which obtained an estimated 90% of its oil from Iraq before the invasion of Kuwait, has reduced its purchases from that country to about 40% of its domestic needs, the State Department said. The U.S. government wants Jordan to quit buying from Baghdad altogether.

U.S. retail inflation jumped 0.8% in August, and the government said that about half the increase was attributable to the effect of the gulf crisis on oil prices. Overall energy prices increased 4.3% for the month, with gasoline up 7.6% and heating oil up 15.4%.

Crisis Indicators:

* Iraqi troops in Kuwait: 360,000

* Iraqi tanks in Kuwait: 2,800

* Iraqi armored vehicles in Kuwait: 1,800

* Iraqi artillery pieces in Kuwait: 1,450

* Number of ship interceptions in gulf: 1,030

* Number of ships boarded: 70

* Number of ships diverted: 5

* U.S. citizens in Kuwait: 1,269

* U.S. citizens in Iraq: 170

* Americans held as prisoners: 82

* High temperature in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia: 106