Militants Take Control in Parts of Iraq's Mosul

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Insurgents were in charge of some areas of south and western Mosul on Saturday, holding two police stations and manning road blocks, as Iraq (news - web sites)'s third largest city appeared to slide out of U.S. and Iraqi control.



Residents in neighborhoods throughout the city on the Tigris river, 240 miles north of Baghdad, said there was little visible presence of Iraqi security forces or U.S. troops on Saturday. They said armed gunmen held some areas.


"In the south and the west of the city, insurgents are doing patrols to protect banks and shops from looters. They are guarding hospitals, schools and fire stations," said one resident, who would give only his first name, Thamer.


Another resident said there were Iraqi National Guards and some U.S. troops positioned at the ends of some of the five bridges that span the Tigris in Mosul, but other than that security was light. Insurgents were keeping security elsewhere.

more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=574&ncid=721&e=3&u=/nm/20041113/wl_nm/iraq_mosul_dc

Looks like the US military is just tryin to keep up:

Army Diverts Unit From Fallujah to Mosul

FALLUJAH, Iraq - The U.S. Army has diverted an infantry battalion from the fighting in Fallujah and sent them back to Mosul after an uprising there by insurgents, U.S. military officials said Saturday.


The 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 25th Infantry Division, was ordered back to Mosul late Thursday after militants attacked bridges, police stations and government buildings in the city, officials said.


The battalion, which is now part of the Stryker Brigade of Task Force Olympia, was already back in the Mosul area.


more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041113/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq&cid=540&ncid=1480

This is right out of the book. (Which book you say?, Well,
Chairman Mao wrote one, very turgid, and Gen. Giap wrote a
better one, which would seem more relevant here. And I've
seen the basic theory of these things in at least a half-
dozen others, history, politics, etc.)

When they do this, it means the "insurgents" are no longer trying
to create chaos, at least in such places, and that is not a
good sign from the occupation POV.

except it is not funny... :(

I can sleep easier now...

The U.S. military said while it was not present everywhere, there were no areas it considered "no go" and control was gradually being restored. It played down suggestions that insurgents forced out of Falluja, west of Baghdad, by a U.S.-led offensive had set up a new base in Mosul.


A U.S. military spokeswoman said she could not confirm reports that a battalion of U.S. troops had been redeployed from Falluja back to Mosul to help regain security.


Previously there had been virtually no evidence of U.S. or Iraqi security forces on the streets, but residents said that changed on Saturday, with units now positioned at the ends of some of the five bridges that span the Tigris in Mosul
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=586&ncid=586&e=4&u=/nm/20041113/wl_nm/iraq_mosul_dc