U.S., Iraqi Units Ready `Battle Space' as Allawi Warns Fallujah

[bemildred]

Appears they are "preparing the battlespace". This means roughly
blowing a lot of shit up to prepare for movement of ground forces.
And most likely, that they intend to "take" the place soon. I'm not
sure what they intend to do with it. What I read elsewhere is that
this is supposed to intimidate the rest of Iraq into obedience. Sort
of like Tamerlane piling up pyramids of skulls outside conquered cities.

From what I read, most of the 35,000 are Iraqi troops too, so it's
somewhat of a test in that regard. Ugly though it is, it should tell
us a lot about the state of things on the ground there and what the
prospects are for the future in Iraq.

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- More than 35,000 U.S. and Iraqi troops massed outside Fallujah after a night of American bombing, as Iraq's prime minister signaled time was running out for fighters within the insurgent stronghold.

``We had airstrikes throughout the night and into the morning, and it's not going to stop anytime soon,'' said U.S. Major Francis Piccoli, spokesman for the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, in a telephone interview from outside Fallujah. ``We're preparing the battle space.''

U.S. planes were undoing fighters' work inside the western Iraqi city, razing earthen berms that could be used for firing positions, leveling street barricades that could channel troop movement, and destroying weapons caches, Piccoli said. ``I'm not saying we'll go into Fallujah tonight or tomorrow, but we are prepared to,'' Piccoli said.

Fallujah has become the focus of U.S.-led military efforts to subdue insurgents in the so-called Sunni Triangle who threaten to disrupt national elections scheduled for January.

Bloomberg

[Don Claybrook]

1. The battlespace? Is that where the warfighters hang out?

Is anyone else tired of the quasi-corporate bullshit names that Wolfowitz and crew like to apply to the business of large-scale killing?

[bemildred]

2. I think you have the right idea. nt

[Rockholm]

3. "Battlespace" has such a pretty ring to it.

I hope their focus group got a toaster or something for their efforts. Gee, WAR sounds so ugly.

[Don Claybrook]

5. Egg poachers. They're not easy to come by, you know. n/t

[VegasWolf]

17. Sounds much better than Fucking Over Civilians Too Stupid To Move

[GoBlue]

4. If they just leveled the whole place

they wouldn't need any Battlespace and the residents could then safely return to cast their votes on a level playing field.

[mike_c]

6. ahh, destroying the village in order to save it....

That has such a distinguished history of success.

[teryang]

7. Actually that's what readying the battlespace means

...destroying articulated cultural features that provide cover, support, and maintainence to resisters. In other words flatten everything without regard for human life.

[daleo]

8. After the monastery at Monte Casino was destroyed

The Germans found that the ruins made better cover than the intact building ever could.

[teryang]

10. Most of the studies I've read, unpublished BDAs

...by Ph.D.s working for DOD and open source literature, indicate that bombing of urban areas is generally ineffective tactically and raises the determination of the "enemy" to resist. This was true of WWII and Vietnam. It is bombing of lines of communications, choke points likes bridges and depots, rail yards, POL and ammo dumps, that is tactically effective. Bombardment of urban areas is usually futile.

Going underground literally is the effective countermeasure. Above ground elevations and features for offense, subterranean passages, and bunkers, for movement and protection.

Laying seige to a city is more effective than bombing it. Few have the political patience for this. Use of psychological warfare, tricks, and unconventional weapons attacks (like biowarfare), assist in undermining the cities will to resist over a long period of time, I don't think American commanders have the political will or military discipline to accomplish a successful seige for a prolonged period. It is costly and ties down too many forces to a tedious routine, which if not maintained, fails.

The battlespace illusion definitely involves flattening all cultural features, so that there is no stone above ground elevation. This was the approach taken during the Korean conflict which quickly defeated north Korean forces. Curtis Lemay was its primary proponent. It had no effect on the Chinese Peoples Volunteers who could not be driven from their defensive positions. It is a very unsophisticated notion promoted by defense contractors selling bombs, communications and targeting suites and so on.) However, negative elevation of cultural features, basements, tunnels, bunkers, conduits, and craters along with natural elevation always remain. This is why Kim Jong Il is a tunneler and bunker builder to this day. Bunkered nukes is the ultimate defense.

Of course you could do it the old fashioned way and invade on the ground and take your lumps. By the time it will be done, it will definitely be a bitter, and bloody campaign of dubious tactical or political value for our side. As soon as our forces withdraw, the status quo ante will return. So the question arises, why bother?

The same might be asked about the entire conflict. I noticed that they now call the war "peace-keeping."

[bemildred]

12. Well, it's a "demonstration".

Most likely ineffective for it's stated purpose, but a standard
sort of mission nonetheless. The main thing I am waiting to see
is how survivable the defenders and defenses prove, and how well
the attackers do in picking their way around in the rubble. That
is assuming that rubbleizing is not enough, and occupation will
be required to document "victory", which is what I expect.

[teryang]

13. I anticipate that the defenders slip away

...for the most part to fight another day, leaving a relatively small hard core prepared to die to the last man. These small units will operate independently in total emcom so that they can survive as long as possible placing as many explosives as possible and attacking targets of opportunity until they die. If they do better than that it will be a huge victory for the defenders. Even if they are all wiped out to a man, the overwhelming majority of casualties, ten, twenty, thirty to one or more, will be civilians which will result in a humanitarian uproar against our regime. Mission accomplished.

[bemildred]

14. Yep. It's them and the booby traps I'm wondering about.

Real glad I don't have to help with the "assault". I do hope the
civvies have vacated, the ones that don't want to participate.

[daleo]

15. John Kenneth Galbraith said pretty much the same thing.

He spent five months studying the effects of the Allied bombing just after the war, for the War Department. He found German production was actually at its peak in 1944, even with the bombardment.

[teryang]

16. Albert Speer's biography

...basically reported the same thing.

[VegasWolf]

18. But we give them Fallujah WalMart in return.

[Enraged_Ape]

9. Battlespace? BRING 'EM ON!!

[Darranar]

11. Have there been any casualty reports on the recent airstrikes?

They seem to be "unavailable" quite often....

[leftchick]

19. um, why is Allawi ordering our troops?

I thought chimpy* aWol asshole said no one would command US troops except US Commanders. Gee, did he lie again?