Fallujah sealed as US prepares for all-out assault

US forces sealed all roads leading to the besieged militant stronghold of Fallujah today and pounded the city with air strikes in advance of an all-out assault.

Loudspeakers at Fallujah mosques blared out Koranic verses and shouts of 'God is great' during the assault, residents said.

In multiple attacks, US warplanes struck several targets in the Iraqi city, including a system of barriers rigged with bombs in the south-eastern part of the city.

They also hit a command post, suspected fighting positions and a weapons cache, said marine Lieutenant Nathan Braden.

US soldiers blocked the roads leading to Fallujah overnight, including the highway leading to the borders with Jordan and Syria.

US officials said contacts are still under way for a peaceful solution to the crisis in Fallujah, which worsened after Marines abandoned their three-week siege of the city last April, enabling Islamic militants to take control there.

But, the re-election of President George Bush makes a military solution more likely and the arrival of the Black Watch battle group near Baghdad freed up more US troops to take part in the assault.

In preparation for the planned offensive, Iraqi authorities have put together a team of Iraqi administrators to run the city after the fighting, Marine Major Jim West.

West said €57.2m has been earmarked to repair the city. The strategy is similar to one used when US troops restored government authority in the Shiite holy city Nafaj last August after weeks of fighting with militiamen.