Final death tolls are still up in the air and the fighting is ongoing, but well over 100 people are confirmed dead today in fighting over the Western Iraqi cities of Ramadi and Fallujah, and Fallujah appears to have fallen more or less entirely under al-Qaeda of Iraq’s (AQI) control.
Officials reported 71 AQI fighters and 32 civilians dead, and an unknown number of tribal fighters as well as Iraqi military and police are also dead in the fighting, which has grown in intensity over the past few days.
Monday’s violent crackdown on protests in Ramadi gave way to mass resignations in parliament and bigger protests in Anbar Province, which AQI used as an opportunity to attack police stations and seize chunks of both Ramadi and Fallujah.
They still hold part of Ramadi, but their big possession is Fallujah, where Iraqi security forces are no longer seen, and where virtually the whole city is under their control. AQI has issued a statement declaring Fallujah an “independent Islamic state,” and at the moment the only resistence they’re facing anywhere near the city is from local tribal leaders, with the military pushed back to the highway leading from the area into Baghdad.
Yeah… The USA needs to stop invading countries.
The 'Kraken' as being released courtesy of the US and their dumb ass coalition prostitutes. "Say something….Tony Blair."
Who………….??????????
Meaning….Al-Qaeda the mythological beast or monster. Where is your imagination Thomas?
Where is Saddam Hussain when you need him?
Oh yeh, I remember now; the "good guys" did him in.
The root of the problem are Wahhabis, the other source of power in Saudi Arabia, the other source of economic power from Saudi Arabia whom are in bed with Bush business relations with Wahhabis, you want for Al-Quaeda to be eliminated, you should eliminate the ongoing business with the source, you want for Al-Queada to be eliminated, you need to stop cooperating with all branches of terrorists groups, those who you help in Turkey and those who you help in Jordan.
In another word, stop your business relations with Saudis and Israelis regimes of brutality, these regimes are the historic source of all social political and economical problems in Middle East, there is no related political or social based democracy produced by either.
So are these the good al-Qaeda (US INC) we need to arm and cheer for, ala Syria, or are they the bad al-Qaeda whom we fought all over Iraq for years? Will the US gov't back up Iraq and send THEM money and equipment to fight these terrorists, or will it offend Saudi Arabia? I guess Syria is too tough to crack, so Ape Bandar is sending them into poor abused, DU'ed, destabilized Iraq, a weaker target for these scum of the earth.
It's all so stupid and a waste of so much life.
So this is what has happened, as if the USA's devastation of Falujah and the longterm effects of its weapons were not enough. Poor Iraq was better off under the tyrant Saddam (when "we" supported him, of course.)