US forces begin clampdown in Fallujah
US forces closed off the turbulent city of Fallujah today ahead of a major operation against insurgents following the horrific murders of four American civilian security men last week.
US commanders have vowed a massive response in Fallujah, one of the most violent cities in the Sunni Triangle, the heartland of the anti-US insurgency north and west of Baghdad.
After the Americans were killed last Wednesday, residents dragged the four bodies through the streets, hanging two of their charred corpses from a bridge, in horrifying scenes that showed the depth of anti-US sentiment in the city.
Early today, US troops closed off entrances to Fallujah with earth barricades ahead of the planned operation, code named Vigilant Resolve.
Some 1,200 US Marines and two battalions of Iraqi security forces were poised to enter the city to arrest suspected insurgents, said Lieutenant James Vanzant, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.
He would not say when the troops would enter the city.
“The city is surrounded,” Vanzant said. “It’s an extended operation. We want to make a very precise approach to this … We are looking for the bad guys in town.”
A witness reported that a US helicopter struck a residential area in the city early today, killing five people.
The bombing damaged five houses, said the witness Mohammed Shawkat.
A marine officer said US forces had a list of targets for raids. He would not give details.
The California-based 1st Marine Expeditionary Force assumed responsibility for Fallujah, 30 miles west of Baghdad, from the US army’s 82nd Airborne Division on March 24.
The marines said they intended to take a softer approach with Fallujah residents, hoping to win popular support.
But the marines have quickly found themselves mired in violence. On March 26, marines and insurgents fought a lengthy street battle in the city that killed one marine and five Iraqis.
On the same day as the killing of the four US civilians, five marines were killed when a bomb exploded under their vehicle in a village near Fallujah.
