‘May they go to hell’

THOUSANDS of American troops, backed by armour and a heavy air barrage, punched their way into Fallujah last night, kicking off a massive assault dubbed Operation Phantom Fury that seeks to put an end to six months of insurgent control of the Iraqi city.

After nightfall, American troops advanced slowly on the north-western Jolan neighbourhood, a warren of alleyways where Sunni militant fighters have dug in.

They faced old-fashioned, hand-to-hand, street fighting not seen in its intensity since the Vietnam war of the 1960s and early 70s.

Artillery, tanks and warplanes pounded the district's northern edge, softening the defences and attempting to set off any bombs and boobytraps before troops moved in.

At the same time, another force of 4,000 troops pushed into the north-eastern Askari district, the first large-scale assault into the insurgent-held area of the city, the military said.

Iraqi troops were expected to be involved in the attack, but there was no word on their actions.

A military spokesman estimated 42 insurgents were killed across Fallujah in bombardments and skirmishes during the day.

Before the thrust into the heart of the city, the US military reported its first casualties of the offensive two marines killed when their bulldozer flipped over into the Euphrates river.

US forces hammered the Jolan district with air strikes and intense tank fire to soften up defences. The marines reported that, at least initially, they did not draw significant fire from insurgents, only a few rocket-propelled grenades that caused no casualties.

Earlier, in preparation for the full assault, US and Iraqi forces seized two bridges over the Euphrates and a hospital on Fallujah's western edge they said was under insurgents' control.

Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said he gave the green light for international and Iraqi forces to launch the long-awaited offensive against Fallujah, aimed at breaking the backbone of the guerrillas before elections set for January.

"We are determined to clean Fallujah of terrorists," he said in Baghdad before visiting the front.

Marine commanders have warned the new offensive could bring the heaviest urban fighting since the Vietnam war. Some 10,000 US marines, soldiers and Iraqi forces are around Fallujah, where commanders estimate around 3,000 insurgents are dug in. More than half the civilian population are believed to have fled.

All roads and government institutions in the two cities will be closed.

Mr Allawi announced the borders with Syria and Jordan were sealed, and Baghdad International Airport was closed for 48 hours.

"The people of Fallujah have been taken hostage and you need to free them from their grip," he told soldiers.

"Your job is to arrest the killers but if you kill them, then so be it."

"May they go to hell!" the soldiers shouted.

Mr Allawi replied: "To hell they will go."