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Nov. 10: A U.S. military vehicle passes near a burning oil pipeline on the outskirts of Fallujah.

Nov. 9: Iraqi army troops arrive to the railroad station in Fallujah.

Nov. 8: Insurgents load a rocket-propelled grenade during an attack on U.S. forces in Fallujah.

Nov. 8: Iraqis prepare graves for those who were killed by an air strike in Fallujah.

Nov. 8: Marines of the 1st Division take position on the outskirts of Fallujah, Iraq.

Nov. 9: U.S. Marines guard the railroad station in Fallujah, Iraq.

Nov. 8: Insurgents, using small arms and mortars, launch an attack on U.S. forces in Fallujah.

Nov. 8: Marines take position on the outskirts of Fallujah, Iraq.

Nov. 8: U.S. Marines take position on the outskirts of Fallujah, Iraq.

Nov. 8: Iraq's interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi speaks at a press conference in Baghdad, Iraq.

-- photos courtesy, AP and FoxNews.com
(my apologies if you have seen some before)

American forces pushed deeper into Falluja today after battling through the deadly streets and twisting alleyways of this rebel-held city.

Most of the 6,500 American troops and 2,000 Iraqi soldiers went over a railroad embankment at six separate points, military officials said, aiming to clear out insurgents one house at a time.

Marines tried to take cover after a phosphorus round, set off to help provide cover for tanks, rained down on the unit. No one was seriously hurt.

After engaging in fierce house-to-house fighting, marines with the First Battalion, Eighth Marines, moved in on Tuesday to secure an Islamic cultural center in Falluja, taking aim at insurgents in nearby buildings.

Outside the Islamic cultural center.

From just outside of Falluja, a marine released a "Dragon Eye" spy plane.

Marines rested on Tuesday before battle in Falluja. Military officials predicted several days of fighting ahead.

Detainees were loaded into a vehicle after being found with AK-47's during house-to-house searches.

An American marine sniper searching for enemy counterparts.

Insurgents sometimes contested every inch of the advance and sometimes melted away.

The aim of the American and Iraqi forces was to clear out insurgents one house at a time.

Heavy enemy sniper fire pinned down a marine as a smoke screen helped pave a way out.

Marines arrested Iraqis today at the railroad station.

-- photos courtesy, AP and New York Times

An American helicopter and Humvees on the northern outskirts of Falluja on Monday.

Marines secured this bridge over the Euphrates River outside of Falluja. The bridge is the same one where the bodies of four burned and mutilated private security contractors were hanged on March 31.

A marine took cover in a ditch on Monday as American forces came under heavy fire in Falluja. A Bradley fighting vehicle patrolled nearby.

United States forces fired on insurgents in Falluja from across the river.

American commanders expected a brutal, block-by-block battle.

An American Special Forces soldier, left, with two marines, took aim on Monday at enemy positions from a roof in Falluja soon after an airstrike.

After the American forces left the roof, it was hit with mortar fire. No one was injured.

American commanders have avoided any public estimate on how long it may take to capture Falluja.

Marine commanders have warned that the new offensive could bring the heaviest urban fighting since Vietnam.

The battle for Falluja could prove the most important since the American invasion of Iraq 19 months ago.

-- photos courtesy, Getty Images and New York Times