Marines Finding Surrendering Fighters Associated Press | Sat, Nov. 13, 2004 | EDWARD HARRIS
FALLUJAH, Iraq - U.S. Marines charged up the stairs in one of Fallujah's grandest buildings Saturday, seeking the high ground in their battle with insurgents. There, they found three foreign men lying in wait.
But they were unarmed, elderly and infirm - three shaken and hungry Egyptians, kneeling on the floor, waving a white sheet.
One wore a turban, had sallow skin and a distended belly. He held out a note in English - a message from Marines who had swept through earlier. It said the foreigners were not suspected combatants, unlike many in Fallujah.
"Tell them we'll get them out for medical treatment. Not now, but soon they'll have a ride to the rear," Lt. Owen Boyce, 24, of Simsbury, Conn., told a translator. "Tell them we'll take care of them. But we've got a casualty and that's the priority."
The three Egyptians were traveling to Baghdad for medical care when the were caught up in the Fallujah fighting.
The earlier Marine patrol had left rations for the three, but the Egyptians apparently had not understood it was food, or how to open the thick brown plastic pouches. The men had not eaten for days.
Boyce and his squad kneeled with the men, splitting open the packs of wheat bread, processed cheese and chocolate milkshakes, which the Egyptians devoured with trembling hands.
"It's pretty clear these guys aren't fighters," Boyce said as the Egyptians pressed cheap plastic lighters, gifts of gratitude, into his hands.
The gentle treatment for the Egyptians after a week of intense urban combat to retake the city from Islamic militants was not the norm as U.S. forces combed the city for holdout insurgents.
Men of fighting age are blindfolded, handcuffed and led away for interrogation. The Marines say such measures are necessary because it is impossible to tell friend from foe.
"The majority are fighters who have holed up and want to attack us from the rear," said Gunnery Sgt. Brett Turek, 36, of Hinsdale, Ill., serving with the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines.
"We've also found legitimate guys who were taking care of their property who were just in a bad place at a bad time."
Marines in one northern neighborhood said they also liberated two hostages, a Syrian and two Iraqis. So far there has been no sign of foreign hostages, including British aid worker Margaret Hassan or Lebanese-American Dean Sadek.
Each day, Marines smashing their way through a city that was once home to 300,000 people are finding men of military age hiding in Fallujah's low houses and few apartment buildings, near loaded weapons.
Marines use plastic bands called flexcuffs on the detainees' wrists, wrap cloth around their eyes and lead them out into streets filled with broken glass, shrapnel and concrete shattered by bullets or bombs.
Marines show little patience with surrendering fighters and suspect that many of the men have given up, hoping to escape to fight another day.
As many as 90 percent of people found in Fallujah since the fighting began are believed to be insurgents and are treated as prisoners - sent to the rear for questioning. Friday night, for example, Marines led about 40 detainees out of a command post, pushing the barefoot men who winced as they walked across the rubble.
Marines have found suspected fighters from Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Sudan, a Marine officer said on condition of anonymity. They also have captured men in Iraqi police and military uniforms.
"These are the ones shooting at us, aside from the Iraqi mujahedeen," the officer said.
Before Marines struck deep into Fallujah this week, U.S. officers estimated between 50,000 and 60,000 civilians remained in the city. But in the city's northern quarters, reputed to be a rebel stronghold, few were seen.
Officials hope they can clear Fallujah and restore security to open the way for national elections in January.