Marines Encircle Fallouja (Operation Valiant Resolve commencing)

LA Times ^ | 4-4-04 | Tony Perry and Edmund Sanders

[BurbankKarl]

FALLOUJA, Iraq — Thousands of Marines surrounded this anti-American stronghold early today in preparation for a complex raid to retake control of the city and apprehend those responsible for last week's slayings of four U.S. security contractors.

The highly anticipated action, dubbed Operation Valiant Resolve, was expected to be one of the biggest military offensives since the fall of Saddam Hussein's government a year ago.

All roads leading to this city of 300,000 were cut off and barricaded with tanks and concertina wire. Working through the cold and windy desert night, under a large moon, Marines set up camps for detainees and residents who might flee any fighting. Before dawn, several Marine positions were hit by mortar rounds and rocket-propelled grenade fire. Bursts of automatic gunfire could be heard throughout the city.

[Getsmart64]

"LOL! Yeah, Lantirn is good, but the videos you will soon be seing will most likely not be a Blk 40 or Beagle with an old, decrepit Lantirn pod. Just my edumicated guess based on who's over there right now. Got some buds who just went over, and I'm familiar with their load out. Hope they keep some of the ass kicking videos for another "greatest hits" CD of terrorists being dismembered and being sent to hell, sans virgins....."

Yeah..I have some good video's...have put quite a few of them on CD....we're just waiting on the Sniper Pod to come on line....then you'll see Camera TV quality....

[Fledermaus]

Of course, the believe in gun control! lol

But heroin is available in abundance!

[mfccinsd]

Well, according to the local news story it sounded that way...like I said, who knows...haven't seen anything on any other station (all the cable stations seem to be taped) and even at the top of the hour didn't hear anything about this, only the other events of the day.

They went to a local reporter (and I believe former military guy) who is there with the troops in Fal. about 20 minutes into the broadcast with this as "breaking news"...totally different from the broadcast nearer the top of the hour about the other Iraq events.

[Lion in Winter]

PING.

[Getsmart64]

I agree.....but is the American public that stoopid???....forget international influence.....can the average american see thru the BS??

[SevenofNine]

OHH Brad they are I just surf over to Debka and report off BBC wire at this hour but breaking so no story YET YEAH THEY ARE at this time

They are in process I am getting tired I hoping something breaking on overnight wires

[MNJohnnie]

It's so easily turned into a worldwide propaganda defeat for our troops. No matter how careful we are, it's likely to be seen on CNN and Al Jezeera as rampaging Nazi tanks driving over orphanages


OH MAN, HOW do you doom and gloom types ever get thru any day? Given how EVERYTHING is always a disaster waiting to happen for you guys, I am surprised you even get out of bed! OK, listen up. Jenin was based on rumor and hearsay not actual camera footage. The WHOLE world has had time to see and digest the barbaric behavior of Fallujha. Even those who were not real happy with our invasion of Iraq condemmed the behavior. That is why it was so smart of Bush to wait rather then go in guns blazing the very next day likes so many of our hard right raido talk show host were screaming. Better to do it right and do it surgical. Rather then take the words screamed out of some hard right Talk Show's host's mouth as if it were the gospel of God, I will put my trust in the smarts of the Marine Ground Commanders and the Political Savvy of GW Bush.

[america-rules]

[BurbankKarl]

debka reports:


Radical Shiite Sadr supporters take over governor’s office in Basra early Monday.

[Brad’s Gramma]

Thanks.

Do you have the url for Sky News? Would you share it?

:-)

[church16]

I'm jealous... I've managed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time for three years. No scalps for this wannabe warrior yet, but we deploy soon to a place near Baghdad to give fixed wing support to the pounders (God bless them all). I thought the place would be pacified by the time we got there, guess not....

[MNJohnnie]

wonder if Al-Douri (#3 on the 55 Most Wanted List) is somewhere here

That would be sweet. I really want that scumnbag dead or in our jail.

[varina davis]

I know. I'ts making me crazy not finding any info anywhere -- not on the Net or TV....

[Travis McGee]

Even hardened Americans will get worn down by pictures like the famous little girl running down the road in VN, burned by napalm.

Like it or not, the "media front" is a very real part of this world war.

[One4Indictment]

FALLUJAH...TIME FOR "SHOCK AND AWE" PART II

[america-rules]

[Maynerd]

Let's hope that punk won't see the sunrise on Tuesday.

[Ichneumon]

I think letting them come in was a clever move. Now, spring the trap!

If the folks running this operation (on our side, I mean) know what they're doing, they'll have AC-130 gunships circling 24/7, and every time any building Fallujah shows armed resistance, a storm of metal will descend from the sky within seconds and disintegrate the place. Time for another lesson of "shock and awe", up close and personal.

And while gathering links for the above pictures, I found this amusing AC-130 crew patch:

[SevenofNine]

OHH Yeah I should I sometime surf this site or BBC wire I like everything in readl time

HERE GOES


http://www.sky.com/skynews/home