Bush, they said, “wanted heads to roll.”Īlthough they felt that the “timing was not right,” military personnel obeyed their civilian leaders and initiated Operation Vigilant Resolve, the First Battle of Fallujah, in April 2004. Ricardo Sanchez, in charge of all coalition forces in Iraq, to proceed immediately. Paul Bremer and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld pressed U.S. Unfortunately, the pleas of Conway and other commanders fell on deaf ears as Ambassador L. “Once you commit you have to stay committed,” he remarked. Conway, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force commander, did not want it to appear that the United States was attacking out of revenge and thus lose the support of the rest of the civilian population. Initially, military leaders suggested that the Bush administration proceed with caution. Situated in the infamous Sunni Triangle, where the former dictator Saddam Hussein enjoyed his greatest support while in power, it is also called the “city of mosques” because of the 200 religious structures that dominate the city’s landscape. Located approximately 40 miles west of Baghdad, Fallujah was a thriving metropolis prior to the war, with a population of more than half a million residents. In Operation Phantom Fury: The Assault and Capture of Fallujah, Iraq (Zenith Press, Minneapolis, MN, 2009, 320 pp., index, photos, maps, $30.00, hardcover), retired Marine Colonel Dick Camp, a Vietnam veteran and Khe Sanh survivor, delivers an intriguing account of the two major campaigns to drive the terrorists out of the city. For the leathernecks, it would be some of the heaviest urban fighting since the Battle of Hue City in Vietnam in 1968. The incident was the catalyst that sparked two separate battles of Fallujah, after which American soldiers and Marines would spend months clearing the city of known terrorists residing there. That night on the evening news, the charred and mutilated bodies of two of the men were hung from an old bridge to be viewed by all. The four men, all employees of Blackwater USA, a private military contractor, had been slain. The car spun out of control and rear ended another. Driver Wes Batalona unsuccessfully tried to make a U-turn in the crowded streets, but was gunned down by AK-47 bullets that ripped through the vehicle. A Mitsubishi Pajero, carrying four Americans, was suddenly ambushed by insurgents. On the morning of March 31, 2004, in the city of Fallujah, Iraq, the unmistakable sound of automatic weapons fire could be heard.
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