And the last paragraph about Fallujah is telling, also.

"Samarra was the least difficult of the rebel cities. It has a history of strong opposition to Saddam Hussein and could be called the easy first stage. The US military has been in and out before. It has now gone in to seize it. The bigger question is how you hold it."

"Falluja is also being softened up in readiness for an attack. But there are a lot of angry people there and it is a big town. It will take a lot of troops and will be a violent struggle."

One very revealing account has come from the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, a media monitoring and action group based in London. It shows the extent of the task ahead.

According to one of its Baghdad staff, Dhiya Rassan, Falluja is controlled by a number of differing groups from "foreign fundamentalists to former Saddam loyalists".

These include "the most-feared insurgents" called the Black Banners Brigades of the Islamic Army, led by Omar al-Hadid, said to have links to al-Qaeda.

"The few police on the streets of the towns are entirely at the insurgents' beck and call," Dhiya Rassan reported.

"Citizens of the town live under the often capricious rule of different groups of mujahideen, or holy warriors - ranging from Islamists and ultra-Islamists to Baathists and outright bandits.

"Nonetheless, residents say the groups are united on the battlefield and would fight side-by-side if US or Iraqi government troops were to launch a new push."

Arf