[Suhiir]

2nd Fallugah
Date: November 2004
Battle Type: USMC assault vs. Mujahideen defend

The killing of five American soldiers in Habbaniyah followed days later by the death and mutilation of four Blackwater military contractors in Fallugah led to moral outrage in the United States. Operation Vigilant Resolve (April 2004) was intended to pacify the city of Fallugah. Afterwards the city was transferred to the control of the Iraqi Fallugh Brigade.

By November the number of insurgents in the city had more then doubled.

The Marines staged ammunition, fuel, and other supplies in the area; launched a series of feints and raids intended to test the enemy’s capabilities, identify their command and control nodes, and gather intelligence. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) monitored the city 24 hours a day, watching as insurgents reinforced positions, set mines and IEDs, and stockpiled weapons in homes and mosques. They also saw a precision air strike on insurgent fortifications set off not only a series of explosions from a daisy-chained improvised explosive devices (IEDs) along a primary road but also a series of explosions in the adjoining streets as well.

Marine Public Affairs conducted an information campaign arguing that the insurgent presence and activities kept locals from receiving humanitarian aid, halted the restoration of essential services and investment that wouldrevitalize the city. To counter al-Qaeda’s claims that precision attacks killed only innocent noncombatants the Marines broadcast information about what the attacks had targeted and why.

By the end of October, the cumulative effects of ongoing operations and Public Affairs had convinced the majority of Fallujah’s population to leave the city. The Marines believed there were fewer than 500 civilians remaining in the city. And 3,500 to 5,000 insurgents. Intelligence also concluded that 33 of 72 mosques were used by insurgents to conduct meetings, store weapons and ammunition, interrogate and torture kidnap victims, and conduct Sharia court sessions.

Two US Army armored battalions and an armored brigade reinforced the 1st Marine Division. And were used primarily to seal off the city and prevent insurgents from fleeing and reinforce the insurgents’ belief that the attack would come from the south.

The Marines asked for assurance from the Iraqi prime minister that he would not suspend the assault once it had begun. "Don’t think about calling us and telling us to stop, because once we get going, we’re not gonna stop ’til we hit the southern end of the town.

At 1900 November 8th 2004, under the cover of darkness and amid pouring rain, the 1st Marine Division began its assault of Fallujah.