Iraqi rebels invite media to "embed" in Falluja
Reuters




BAGHDAD, Nov 6 (Reuter) - Falluja insurgents besieged by U.S. and Iraqi troops on Saturday invited journalists to "embed" with them to report their side of the war.

"All media will be allowed into Falluja to witness the crusade against Islam and see the real face of America. U.S. media will not be excluded," said a statement by the Falluja Mujahideen Shura (council), composed of insurgent leaders, tribal chiefs and Sunni Muslim clerics.

"We will protect and transport them to the location of the events. There will be a special building for the journalists."

The offer mimics a practice introduced by U.S.-led forces for last year's Iraq invasion in which reporters are attached to military units and live alongside the troops.

Dozens of journalists are embedded with U.S. Marines set for an assault on Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, and another rebel-held Sunni Muslim city, Ramadi, further west.

The few journalists remaining in Falluja, which has been the target of repeated U.S. air strikes for weeks, are mainly Iraqis, although some work for foreign news outlets.

An Iraqi cameraman filming for Reuters Television, Dhia Najim, was killed by a U.S. sniper in Ramadi this week.

Falluja residents say air raids often destroy homes and kill civilians. The U.S. military says they are carefully targeted and avoid accidental casualties.

A U.S. offensive to capture Falluja and Ramadi from what the government describes as Saddam Hussein loyalists and foreign Islamist fighters is expected any day.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/FRI650937
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