WASHINGTON, Oct. 14 (UPI) -- U.S. attacks on the city of Fallujah intensified Thursday in preparation for what may be a final ground battle to gain control of that recalcitrant city.
"This operation puts the anti-Iraqi forces in Fallujah on notice," the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force said in a press release Thursday.
The green light for a major offensive, however, is in the hands of Shiite Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's government. Under pressure from his Sunni colleagues, in particular Iraqi President Ghazi al-Yawar, he is attempting to negotiate a peaceful settlement with the people of Fallujah.
On Wednesday, under pressure from the United States, he threatened an attack on the city if the foreign fighters resident in town are not turned over. On Thursday, Fallujah representatives suspended negotiations with Baghdad because they said that ultimatum was impossible to comply with, according to news reports.
Foreign fighters are not the only sources of trouble in Fallujah. Iraqis command much of the insurgent activity in the town, notably Abdullah Abdulaziz al-Janabi, leader of Mohammed's Army and chairman of the mujahedin shura council. The 10-member council was created by Fallujans in July and quickly seized political authority from the official town council.
Fallujah has been a no-go zone for Americans by dint of negotiations that ended the bloody April battle there. It is serving as both a tactical and philosophical center for the increasingly organized insurgency. U.S. intelligence maintains that it is a relatively safe harbor from which insurgent organizers deploy to other cities to recruit and train fighters, and where they retreat when their mission is complete.
Military intelligence also suggests Fallujah is serving as the headquarters of Jordanian extremist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who has claimed responsibility for many of the executions of Western hostages.
The former Iraqi ambassador to the United States said Thursday the Baghdad government should do "whatever it takes" to clear Fallujah of foreign fighters.
"The threat of military force may have an effect" in Fallujah, said Rend Rahim, who until this month was Iraq's ambassador to the United States. She spoke Thursday at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.
"The citizens of Fallujah are beginning to turn against foreign insurgents," she said, referring to a recent media report. "What we are seeing is a gradual process of maturing of dialogue. Force or the threat of force are beginning to yield results right now."
More than 50 U.S. Marines were killed in the April battle in Fallujah and hundreds of Iraqis died. That fight ended in a politically imposed stand off -- as media reports of the suffering of the townspeople filtered out, the Marines were pulled back. Ultimately, the White House ordered a withdrawal and negotiated settlement.
That settlement included the creation of the Fallujah Brigade, a now-disbanded force of Iraqi fighters who were meant to keep order, hand over foreign fighters, and turn in those responsible for the March 31 slaying of four American security contractors. In exchange, U.S. forces would not patrol in the city although they surrounded it and controlled the roads in and out of it. Al-Yawar was the primary broker for that agreement.
The brigade quickly became part of the problem in Fallujah, joining forces with Janabi and others likes him and participating in the kidnapping and killing of at least one Iraqi National Guard battalion commander.
The Fallujah Brigade was officially dissolved on Sept. 11, a first step toward the battle, which ongoing negotiations are meant to circumvent.
Rahim expressed cautious optimism about the negotiations.
"I don't think its useful to predict" a lack of success in Fallujah negotiations, she said. "I think they should be taken all the way to the end. The Iraqi government has said it is going to stay wary and somewhat cautious about any agreement reached in Fallujah."
"The ultimate objective is to bring the rule of law and clear Fallujah of foreign fighters we suspect are there," she said.
Rahim suggested bringing Fallujah under control by violent means is preferable to allowing it to remain a safe harbor for the resistance.
"Look at the consequences of having done nothing about Fallujah in April. Those are the consequences we should think about," she said. "We have to distinguish between the places that export terrorism and places that suffer from terrorism. ... Those (places) are where we really need to go after and we have to do whatever it takes."
U.S. and Iraqi government outposts around Fallujah are increasingly under mortar, rocket, car bomb and small-arms attack. A major rocket barrage in September killed one U.S. officer in the Regimental Combat Team-1 headquarters and seriously wounded the commander of RCT-1, according to Marine officials.
The I Marine Division, using elements of RCT-1 and the U.S. Army's Brigade Combat Team 2 of the 2nd Infantry Division, began Thursday night's operations with Air Force and Marine Corps air strikes, according to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. Marine jets and helicopters are also providing close air support to ground combat troops.
About 40 miles to the east, Marine forces and Iraqi security forces are also conducting sweep operations and say they have captured 100 suspected insurgents and four major weapons caches.
The offensive is being carried out "at the request of the Iraqi interim government," according to I MEF, "to enhance security and stability of the country as well as to ensure an intimidation-free elections process."
