Ground assault on Fallujah imminent.

The attack will primarily involve Marine units -- such as the 1st and 24th Marine Expeditionary Forces -- along with Iraqi military forces, largely made up of Kurdish Peshmerga. British forces will deploy to Iskandariya to replace members of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit -- approximately 2000 Marines -- freeing them up to participate in the assault. A military source of mine confirms that the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force will also be involved in combat, as supported by this article in the Army Times.

A media contact of mine in Iraq says, "We already knew this was coming. The MEF-1 has been sending out embed notices to reporters that they better be ready to move NOW (within the next seven days) and not to expect to be unembedded for two weeks or more."

A major ground assault on Fallujah is a very dangerous escalation of the conflict in Iraq -- one almost certain to kill hundreds of Iraqis in Fallujah, including women and children. Use of Kurdish troops to fight against the residents of Fallujah is likely to incite hatred between Iraqi Arabs and Kurds nationwide, increasing the risk of internal conflict throughout Iraq.

Iraqis -- especially Sunni -- are warning about the serious nature of this assault and its risk of escalating into a wider revolt. Sunni religious leaders are threatening an election boycott if the US goes through with the attack. This could lead to the upcoming elections being viewed as illegitimate, which could lead directly to the deaths of many additional US soldiers, Iraqis, and contractors working in Iraq.

There are only a few days to effectively respond to this serious escalation of the war. It is my hope that people will organize immediately and stand up loudly to oppose a further widening of the Iraq conflict, especially when it is being foisted on the people of this country on the eve of Election Day.

America must not sit quietly on the sidelines like it has for so many months while the Bush administration kills soldiers and Iraqi civilians alike for financial and political gain. We must seek to create and nurture an inclusive voice of American concience that loudly says "YES!" to *REAL* Iraqi independence, and *NO!* to the further unwarranted escalation of this conflict.