Falluja, The New Samarra

US Marines are fighting pockets of insurgents in Falluja and have apparently captured or killed more than 100 Iraqis after taking 70% of the city. Hang on a second. Weren't there estimated to be between 3,000 and 5,000 insurgents in Falluja? Where did they all go? Probably back to Samarra, the area the marines left to attack Falluja, or to Baghdad. Considering the increase in violence in Baghdad and Samarra over the past couple of days this probably isn't a bad hypothesis.

The US military are feeding the insurgency with these attacks on Iraqi cities. Iraqi resentment of US military presence increases as more civilians are killed and more homes are destroyed. This makes life more dangerous for US troops who seem to be being killed at more alarming rates each day. Rather than describing the problem I guess I should offer a solution. Unfortunately too many mistakes were made early by the CPA. Dissolving the Iraqi military, marginalizing Baath party members, Abu Ghraib, the installation of a CIA linked puppet government and a lack of any cultural understanding have created an environment rich for organized rebellion. Following the inevitable US withdrawal a vacuum will be filled by a ruthless Shiite theocracy in Baghdad and the South, and an autonomous Kurdish government in the North. I hope the sectarian government can be replaced with a secular government over time. That's assuming they don't catch wind of the US led religious renaissance in government.