The rapid U.S. push into Fallujah has come without the sort of fateful showdown that would break the back of the insurgency. In fact, advance U.S. and Iraqi government warnings gave the militants plenty of time to get out of town, and it appears many did just that. Military reports say small bands of guerrillas, with no more than 15 members each, fled the city in the weeks before the U.S.-led onslaught, which was widely telegraphed by public statements and news reports. "That's probably why we've been able to move as fast as we have," an officer in the Army's 1st Cavalry Division said Wednesday.
Insurgencies typically succeed by avoiding face-to-face battles with stronger military forces and by staging attacks where armies are weakest. The guerrillas who fled Fallujah might simply be repositioning themselves to fight elsewhere, said the officer, who agreed to discuss the Fallujah situation on condition of anonymity. Under embed rules, military officers have the option of not being identified in news reports for security reasons. The development might mean that the world's most powerful army is chasing a smaller band of insurgents than previously thought. Before the assault, the 1st Cavalry estimated that 1,200 guerrillas were holed up in Fallujah, with as many as 2,000 in nearby towns and villages. It was unclear how many were left inside or had been killed. |