Abu Dhabi, 15 Nov 04 (WAM) -- The UAE press said today thatthe US troops would take Fallujah but threw doubt over their controlof the situation after the battle as the consequences are unpredictable.
''No doubt the US forces will take Fallujah at the end of the day.Butthey cannot handle the consequences of the battle,'' wrote the Arabicdaily ''Akhbar Al Arab''.
Commenting on the battle of Fallujah, the paper said Fallujah was notonly the town that stood against the US forces. There were talks aboutthe control of fighters over Mosul Anbar and other towns and they mighthave the ability to control other towns in any part of the country.
The paper sees that the core of the problem lay with the presenceof the foreign troops as this gives justification to resistance and evento terrorist acts.
Another paper said that after five days of fierce fighting in Fallujah,the US and Iraqi forces had declared that the battle is almost over, barringa few pockets of resistance. US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld hassaid US forces are in control of much of Fallujah now. This must surelybe a big relief for the coalition forces who were perhaps expecting theworst.
''Since Fallujah had been a thorn in the flesh of the forces, they expectedresistance to be much stronger there, and were geared for a longer battle.
Many feared getting mired down in street battles and urban guerilla warfare,some predicting the worst as in Vietnam, according to a comment by KhaleejTimes.''The battle of Fallujah can only be seen as one step towards establishingthe rule of law in Iraq. Much of the country is now in a shambles, andthere is a lot to be done before the January elections - most importantbeing instilling in Iraqis a faith in democracy, it said.
''Most Iraqis have lost all hope of a quick return to normalcy. Theyhad welcomed the Americans as their liberators when the US forces overthrewSaddam, but soon that joy turned to despair when total anarchy prevailedin the country.
The Americans, it added, tried their best to restore order, butwere constrained by several factors - Fallujah being on top. The insurgentshad made Fallujah their home and terrorised the populace. Scared residentsdared not incur their wrath by becoming informers to the so-called occupyingforces.
''The Americans realised this and knew that if Fallujah was left alone,it would become a festering wound and infect the whole country. So, ithad to be sanitised.
''The battle had to be taken there. Without that, elections wouldbe meaningless. Of course, nothing comes without a price, and the Iraqishave been paying too heavy a price for securing their liberty. In anyurban warfare, unfortunately, civilians are as much at risk as the battlingforces. Hopefully, the Iraqis will not have to see too many dark daysahead. Afghanistan has already shown the way.
