09 November 2004
U.S. General Says Assault on Fallujah Is Ahead of Schedule
Defense Department Report, November 9: fighting in Fallujah, PSI exercise
Washington -- U.S. and Iraqi forces fighting anti-regime and terrorist insurgents in Fallujah are on or ahead of schedule, says the commander of the Multinational Corps in Iraq.
At a Pentagon briefing November 9, Army Lieutenant General Thomas Metz, operational-level commander responsible for the conduct of coalition military activities in Iraq, said he expects "several more days of tough urban fighting." So far, he said, U.S. and Iraqi forces have encountered insurgent strength in numbers consistent with a U.S. estimate of 2,000-3,000 fighters.
"I'm very pleased at the position that we have the [coalition] force in right now, and the situation that the enemy is facing. He doesn't have an escape route, because we do have the cordon around the city very tight," Metz said via a teleconference from Baghdad.
The commander said that 48 hours into the attack, U.S. and Iraqi forces are still encountering resistance, though the insurgents' outer defenses have been destroyed. The insurgents are fighting in small squads of three to six people, Metz said.
Asked about casualties on both sides, Metz said U.S. and Iraqi casualties are about 12, while enemy casualties are higher than he had expected. He declined to give a casualty count. Civilian casualties have been light, he said, because 50 to 75 percent of the civilians had already left the city and the rest are obeying a curfew and keeping indoors.
Metz said he thinks the insurgents are "fighting hard, but not to the death." He said they are either being killed where they are or are falling back. In many cases, he said, it's difficult to tell what is happening, "because of the complexity of urban terrain." When insurgents fire from inside buildings at U.S. forces and gunfire is returned by a tank's main cannon or other weapon, he said, it's hard to know whether the insurgent escaped before the return fire or was killed by it.
"But there is not a sense that he is staying in particular places," Metz added. "He is continuing to fall back or he dies in those positions."
U.S.-trained and equipped Iraqi forces are performing well, Metz said. Essentially light infantry troops trained at squad and platoon level, Iraqi forces are operating in those formations. The better battalions have been assigned sectors to fight in, he said. "Some of the more elite forces ... have done very, very well." Iraqi forces are being used to clear out buildings, homes and mosques -- of which Fallujah has 77, he added.
U.S.-HOSTED PROLIFERATION SECURITY INITIATIVE UNDER WAY
The U.S. Coast Guard is hosting a Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) maritime interdiction training exercise November 8-18 based in Key West, Florida, according to the State Department.
The 13th PSI exercise is the first to show new legal authority created by a recently signed bilateral boarding agreement permitting rapid consent procedures for boarding partner-flagged vessels. The exercise "is focused on unique operational issues and legal authorities associated with interdictions in maritime chokepoints, such as straits and canals," according to the release.
More than 20 countries are participating, and the United States, France, the Netherlands, and Britain are contributing operational assets. For additional information on the Proliferation Security Initiative, see http://www.state.gov/t/np/c10390.htm.
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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