The press is worthless in trying to figure out what’s going in Iraq (and they are not much better in informing us about developments elsewhere for that matter). What’s going on in Fallujah? I can’t figure it out. I think even Wretchard is having a hard time, and he’s clearly more wired in than I am (OK, I’m not wired in at all).
On the one hand, there was all this talk of a ceasefire, yet the firing didn’t cease. And while Centcom kept saying that the Marines were only returning fire, snipers and ambush forces were infiltrating and initiating combat (and I’m not even going to mention AC-130s hosing down parts of town at night — oops). Now I’m not accusing Centcom of lying, but perhaps their pronouncements were directed more at terrorists watching CNN than Americans.
So are the Marines pulling out of Fallujah? One article says yes, another later one says no.
Clearly the correct strategy is to kill or capture all the insurgents in Fallujah; all this talk of ceasefire and pullback is disheartening. So are we screwing up? Or are we trying to create tactical confusion and trying to soothe those calling for restraint like Kofi Annan? Only time will tell.
