Marines Tighten Grip on Fallouja

U.S. Marines tightened their cordon around this embattled city Tuesday in an effort to stem the flow of guns, ammunition and reinforcements to insurgents who continued to clash with American forces despite a truce sponsored by the Iraqi Governing Council.

Aided by information provided by residents of Fallouja, Marines stepped up what they call their “knock and talk” policy of raids on homes suspected of being used to store weaponry or harbor fighters.

The Marines, who began a blockade around the city more than a week ago, have grown suspicious of trucks bringing food, medical care, water and other items to residents caught in the fighting. Several trucks have been found to be carrying weapons, Marines said.

“Fallouja is a city that nobody in the region cared much about,” said Marine Capt. Phil Cushman. “Now suddenly everybody cares in this country and neighboring countries. It’s very suspicious.”

Estimates of the number of insurgents in the city of 300,000 vary from several hundred to several thousands. Some are believed to be driven by ideology; others are believed to have been paid, judging by the currency found on some of the bodies.

Marines are concerned that, as it drags on, the battle for Fallouja could become a magnet for what they call “amateur jihadists” from throughout the Middle East, eager to fight the Americans.

The raids, carried out day and night, are meant to be done swiftly and with enough firepower to protect Marines in the event they are attacked. Some have resulted in ambushes.

A raid late Monday night on a farmhouse just outside Fallouja was typical. Marines had received information that the farmer was acting as a middleman to help smuggle fighters and weaponry into Fallouja.

The Marines arrived in a dozen vehicles just as a large gathering of men, women and children was sitting down for a meal of chicken, bread and a salsa-like dish. The men were then to retire to a grass area where rugs and pillows were neatly arrayed, with a water pipe.

The farmer greeted the Marines warmly, patting one on the head and saying in Arabic that he believed the American to be a good person. A dozen women, two dozen men, and three dozen children sat in a docile fashion in an outdoor patio, saying nothing, their heads bowed, seemingly neither afraid nor indignant.

Questioned by the Marines, the man denied having telephones, though electronic surveillance had detected calls abroad to and from the house.

As some Marines stood guard outside, others searched the house. The bedrooms were spacious, well tended, with televisions, CD players and numerous Islamic wall hangings.

Finding nothing incriminating in the house, the Marines searched several trucks outside. The farmer insisted that he had only one gun, as permitted under Iraqi law.

In two smaller trucks, Marines found an AK-47 and a submachine gun. In a larger truck, hidden in bags of rice, were stacks of ammunition.

The Marines told the farmer, who was about 50, and the other males that they would be detained to answer “a few questions.” The older of the farmer’s two wives began to plead with the Marines to leave her husband there. Soon the other women and children joined in.

The Marines asked the women and children to step into the house. They refused. Their cacophony of wails, demands and shouts filled the warm night air, as the buzz of Cobra helicopter gunships was heard.

One of the adult men dropped to the ground, clutching his chest as if he was having a heart attack. This intensified the crying and screaming. A Navy corpsman checked the man’s blood pressure and announced that he was fine.

The reaction is not uncommon.

“If the women get emotional and hysterical, generally you know that the husband has done something wrong, something evil,” said Maj. Joseph Clearfield. “Wives know what husbands have been doing.”

Within minutes, 18 men, including the farmer, were taken into custody, trucked to a detention facility where they were examined by a doctor and given water, food, a mattress and a copy of the Koran.

Many detainees are released within days, if authorities can find no evidence against them, or if they provide evidence against others. If they are found to have committed crimes, they will be sent to an Iraqi prison to await trial by an Iraqi court.

Marines, who assumed responsibility for much of this region of Iraq last month, said the process of preventing a further buildup of insurgents in Fallouja will be slow. “It’s going to take awhile,” Capt. Michael Fehn said.