Do the Insurgents Run Fallujah?

[markses]

Is Fallujah, a city of 200,000, firmly in the control of the Iraqi "insurgency"? The question is worth asking today, after insurgents entered a local police station without much resistance, freeing over 100 prisoners, then attacked an Iraqi "Civil defense" compound in a dawn raid.

According to all accounts, the insurgents performed a team insertion with special tactics - suggesting that they have some military training in a formal setting; mopreover, they attacked in well over platoon strength numbers in daylight.

Here's the kicker: the compound they attacked was the very same visited by US Middle East Commander John Abizaid just days ago - a visit during which both he and Major General Charles Swanack (commander of the 82nd Airborne Division) came under RPG fire from insurgents, who may or may not have been tipped off. It seems that the insurgents are saying the following: In Fallujah, we make the policy, and we do what we want, when we want. In other words, we have the power here, and you come and go at our discretion.

What we are seeing now is reminiscent of NLF "semi-control" of governmental structures in rural Vietnam during the early 1960's (see, for example, Jeffrey Race's brilliant "War Comes to Long An: Revolutionary Conflict in a Vietnamese Province"). We've already seen that Samarrah is more or less "liberated," with insurgents operating at will. Is the whole of the so called "Sunni Triangle" semi-controlled by insurgent forces?

[DuctapeFatwa]

1. Most western colonization projects have been plagued with this problem

at one time or another: surly, ungrateful natives who simply to not have the capacity to appreciate the efforts undertaken on their behalf by their bountiful benefactors, who offer them the opportunity to be a part of helping to keep US defense and energy industries strong!

America must not falter in its resolve to secure its natural resources in the region. These are simple, childlike people who may grumble, but secretly respect their superiors more for the firm hand they know, in their simple childlike way, that they need in order to be made into useful servants.

[Ernesto]

2. The Fallujah I saw on Frontline the other night was in no way "secure"

for the ocuppiers. Burned out US vehicles, anti American graffiti on many walls & legions of unemployed, pissed-off young arab men.... Good luck to the green US kids that are being rotated into that lovely spot.