Here is more of the ugly reality being learned following the long overdue battle for Fallujah in Iraq.
U.S. Marine officers said today that U.S. and Iraqi troops sweeping Fallujah have uncovered enough weapons to fuel a nationwide rebellion and that clearing the former insurgent bastion of arms is holding up the return of civilians.Most of Fallujah's estimated 250,000 civilians left the central Iraq city ahead of the devastating Nov. 8 assault and "it will be probably several more weeks" before significant numbers of them can return, said Lt. Col. Dan Wilson of 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.
"We are looking at a very dense city, of some 50,000 structures -- each and every one of them has a potential (weapons) cache hidden inside," he told reporters.
Searching out and disposing of weapons is "very tedious hard work for the Marines," he said. "People still have to be patient, they need to have a safe and secure environment before they can go back."
Without providing details, Wilson called the amount of arms uncovered in Fallujah "stunning."
"The amount of weapons was in no way just to protect a city," said Maj. Jim West, a Marine intelligence officer. "There was enough to mount an insurgency across the country."
A huge store of weapons and explosives was discovered at the mosque of Abdullah al-Janabi, a Muslim cleric and insurgent leader, according to a report on The New York Times' Web site. Al-Janabi is thought to have fled the city.
The Times said the mosque compound in a residential area had sheds stacked with TNT, mortar shells, bombs, guns, rocket-propelled grenades and ammunition. A naval mine was in the street outside, it added.
Military officers told the Times there were no arms in al-Janabi's nearby house, but they said they discovered files on people who had been tortured and executed for cooperating with U.S. authorities and their allies.
Marines clearing houses in Fallujah have found Kalashnikov rifles, ammunition, rocket-propelled grenades, artillery shells and heavy-caliber cannon -- with weapons caches often marked by a brick hanging by a string on homes' outside walls.
U.S. and Iraqi forces moving into the city smashed much of the insurgents' weaponry, bending gun barrels to prevent future use. Many large weapons caches were blown up quickly with only a cursory attempt at inventory.
West noted that insurgents stashed arms in mosques. "Even gravesides were used to bury weapons," he said.
West said U.S. forces turned up a "cook book" with instructions on using mercury nitrate and silver nitrate and descriptions of nerve agents. He didn't elaborate.
West said the majority of the weapons caches were in the south, as the insurgents likely expected the attack to be initiated from there.
Via Winds of Change, here's a 59-slide PowerPoint deck prepared by an exploitation team presenting photographs and other astounding and disturbing details.
Via BlackFive, here are first-hand reports from the Marines who took the city back from jihadist fanatics at point-blank range. The word "heroism" comes to mind immediately. God bless them all.
Posted by Alan at November 24, 2004 09:36 PM