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.

[StarCMC]

Whoops! 300=3000! PReview is my friend...preview is my friend...preview is my friend! LOL!

[RightWingMama]

bump

[af_vet_1981]

The highly anticipated action, dubbed Operation Valiant Resolve, should be renamed Leave No Stone On Another.

[WV Mountain Mama]

All I know is that it is surrounded. I am not sure how much fighting is taking place, but I have heard that there has been gunfire.

[Triple Word Score]

You're right...gonna be a long day. Only at post 520ish, so the story hasn't broken yet. As long as the main news outlets are quiet I'm going to assume that W is being crafty (and we want him crafty...craft is good...crafty saves our troops...)

If I see one legless armless kid paraded and those unpatriotic morons start whining about us I will shut off the news. I've done it before. Their sponsors will get no joy from me.

They all shoulda thought about that before they placed their cameras in expectation, and let terrorists murder OUR civilians and kick around their corpses.

[SBprone]

"Looks like something out of SF"

Wasn't he in the Village People?

[mathluv]

Neat! Thanks!!

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Its going to be a rough couple of days, praying for the safety of our Marines & Soldiers and death to the radicals in Iraq.

Joining with you in prayer.

[Barlowmaker]

Better to do it right and do it surgical

Absolutely. Surgical means understanding the lessons learned in this Operation. It is impossible to identify, locate and remove a small number of enemy combatants using ambush techniques on targets of opportunity without the active involvement, support and co-operation of local residents. We didn't find 45 of the 52 in the deck by happenstance. We weren't digging a latrine when we stumbled upon Saddam. The Brothers' Grim weren't victims of bad luck in Tikrit.

From day one, we have viewed Fallujah, and it's citizens, as hostile enemy combatants. The various Army units "securing" the city have done nothing to give Fallujahians of lawful rationality, peace and civic duty any reason to view our purpose as just liberators. The entire operation - strategic and tactical - has been a debacle. Most of our KIAs in this region have been easily planned and quickly implented detonations of roadside bombs against supply convoys supporting Airborne and Infantry units woefully ill suited for the Fallujah mission. It was obvious as of last May that Fallujah was not a last stand target of Revolutionary Guard professionals and weaponry and 500,000 civilians willing to go to their death for Saddam and Baathist rule. We need to replicate what the 4th ID did in Tikrit. House by house, weapons cache by weapons cache, little fish dropping dime on bigger fish until Uday takes a TOW up his tailpipe.

[GunnyB]

20,000 Marines? Backed up by the full air support of the Coalition? These people are SCREWED. Count on it.

Though it has been a while since I've had the honor of wearing the uniform, I can unequivocally state that those sand sucking pigs are in for the most intense, crushing action they have ever imagined. A Division of Marines, close air, tanks, arty - they are SO screwed. I would give anything to be there with my band of brothers...

[txrangerette]

Uday?

[r9etb]

bet our soldiers are happy to be doing something other than driving around as open targets.

Yeah, like that's all they've been doing. Sheesh.

[DollyCali]

Thanks BB..

[boxerblues]

Your Welcome, I had that in my "How to keep Mom informed, or where is your son now" file.

[mathluv]

I just bought Robin Moore's 'Hunting Down Saddam'. I haven't started it yet.

[r9etb]

This wouldn't be a problem is those worthless Turks had of let us invade from their country instead of sucking up to the French.

FWIW, I think the Turks' problem was with the Kurds, more than anything else. They've had their own trouble with the Kurds for decades.

[mathluv]

Greg Palkot (sp?) is embedded with a group somewhere.

[mathluv]

I know this was written last night. I heard on Fox this morning that Sadr has been named an outlaw.

[Travis McGee]

It will be interesting to follow what happens next to Sadr. Very telling. If he continues on to spout calls for terror, and is not arrested or killed, that will greatly empower his mobs. If he's killed or arrested (not easy to arrest someone surrounded by fanatical mobs) it will prick his mob's balloon. Of course they will vent and scream for a few days, but in the long run we have to take out the enemy leaders. I vote for the Yassin Solution.

[mathluv]

Here's the stupid civilian question of the day: How many Marines in a battalion???"

I guess I am one of those stupid civilians. I know next to nothing about numbers, or how staffing is done, or what all of the ranks are. That does not mean I do not want to learn, or do not support our troops 100%.