Bloodshed in Fallujah:

Thousands of American troops fought their way into the most dangerous parts of Falluja last night at the start of an all-out assault to win back control of the Iraqi insurgent stronghold. The much-heralded attack began shortly after dusk in a two-pronged push by marines into suburbs in the north, while US army soldiers fired volleys of mortars into the southern parts of the city...US commanders and Iraqi officials hope the Falluja assault, which is deeply unpopular with some Iraqis, will subdue the ever-more violent Islamist insurgency and prepare the way for elections due in January. The top US commander in Iraq, General George Casey, said last night that "a major confrontation" was expected. "We expect that we will have a fight in there over the next few days. As I said, I do believe some [insurgents] have relocated already to other places, but others have come in." He said there were between 10,000 and 15,000 US troops and more than five battalions of Iraqis involved in the operation. A force of 4,000 marines and soldiers from the marine regimental combat unit took the railway and pushed into the Jolan district in the city's north-west, a known base for foreign Arab fighters, while another force of 4,000 fought their way into the Askari neighbourhood in the north-east. All day the city had come under a barrage of aircraft bombing raids, which grew more intense as night approached. From one mosque a cleric exhorted the insurgents to fight: "God is greatest, God is greatest, God is greatest, oh martyrs," he said. "Rise up mujahideen." There were frequent heavy exchanges of fire. Video footage from inside the city showed people burying seven bodies, some insurgents, in a makeshift cemetery established in a football ground during the last assault in April. In preparation for the attack, codenamed Phantom Fury, Ayad Allawi, the Iraqi prime minister, had announced a security crackdown under the 60-day state of emergency. He put Falluja under indefinite curfew from dusk last night. Highways were closed, weapons in the city were banned, the borders with Syria and Jordan were closed and the international airport in Baghdad was shut. "We have started to take necessary measures to provide security and peace in Iraq," Mr Allawi told a televised news conference.