Iraq has declared martial law for 60 days. U.S. troops are now attacking Fallujah. U.S. commanders are warning that this will be the most brutal urban fighting since Vietnam.

Under the martial law edict,

... all traffic and men between the ages of 15 and 55 were banned from the streets of Fallujah and surrounding areas 24 hours a day. All members of the Fallujah police and security services were suspended indefinitely and all roads into Fallujah and neighboring Ramadi were closed indefinitely.

Terry Kindlon, criminal defense attorney and former U.S. Marine Sergeant who fought in Vietnam, responds to one of Talkleft's conservative commenters:

Whenever I read one of your comments in support of "the war" I truly wonder what planet you're living on. As a former Marine Sergeant who was seriously wounded during the Tet Offensive in Vietnam, and as the father of one son who's an active duty Marine Captain, and another son who's worked for the UN in both Iraq and Afghanistan over the past two years, it is my opinion that you don't have the slightest idea of what you're saying. If you had ever seen the smashed body of a decapitated little civilian girl, or carried the still warm dead body of an 18 year old Marine in your arms, as have I, you would know better than to stand on the sidelines yakking about statistics and cheering while my Marine Corps, the best military force this country has ever assembled, is consistently misused by a delusional civilian administration for highly questionable purposes of very questionable morality.

It is at times like these that I want to say to guys like you that if you love the small of napalm in the morning (you wouldn't, incidentally, because it stinks) and if you think this war is such a great idea, why don't you go fight in it! If you're too old, or too scared, send your son. They have lots of openings, and I'll be happy to cook you up a nice, warm cassarole. Semper fi, pal...Terry Kindlon

Thanks, Terry, for your service past and present.

Knights Ridder reports that Marine officials are preparing for casualties at "levels not seen since Vietnam." At the same time, Doctors Without Borders is pulling out of Iraq due to the increased level of violence. [links via Cursor.]

The intensive airstrikes have begun, ground assault imminent. The U.S. tells civilians to get out of Dodge.

U.S. troops urged civilians to flee Falluja on Friday and launched air strikes on the rebel city ahead of an assault seen as critical to attempts to pacify Iraq before January elections.

U.S. forces sealed all roads to the city and used loudspeakers and leaflets in Arabic to tell residents they would detain any man under 45 trying to enter or leave the city. "We are making last preparations. It will be soon. We are just awaiting orders from Prime Minister (Iyad) Allawi," Marine Colonel Michael Shupp told Reuters near Falluja.

...U.S. warplanes and artillery bombarded Falluja on Friday, residents said, and rebels fired mortars and rocket-propelled grenades at U.S. forces on the city outskirts. There was no immediate word on casualties. Ambulances were waiting for fighting to ease before venturing on to the streets.

Yesterday, two marines were killed and four were wounded.

Defense Tech has the details of a new, satellite-guided bomb, especially designed for urban combat. He says it could be used in the massive planned assault on Fallujah.

Hungary announced Wednesday that it will withdraw its troops from Iraq by March of 2005. Hungary now joins Dominican Republic, Honduras, Nicaragua, the Philippines and Spain.

More news in Hungary today: It ended its military draft for the first time in 136 years, and it offered to send its troops to a different military mission if needed.

So much for thoughts that a Bush re-election might increase support from our allies.

What about Poland? As previously announced, it will begin withdrawing its troops in January.

President Bush is failing miserably to quell violence in Iraq. Let's not let election news block out important news about the deteriorating situation there, like this article today informing that a second American has been kidnapped in Iraq this week. In addition to the news of the kidnapping of a Lebanese-American businessman, the article mentions that a videotape surfaced today showing three more beheadings. And on Fallujah, it reports:

Al-Jazeera television broadcast a threat by an unspecified armed group to strike oil installations and government buildings if the Americans launch an all-out assault on Fallujah. The report was accompanied by a videotape showing about 20 armed men brandishing various weapons including a truck-mounted machine gun.

Human Rights Watch has a new report that charges the U.S. with failing to preserve critical evidence necessary for the trial of Saddam Hussein:

U.S.-led forces in Iraq failed to safeguard official documents belonging to Saddam Hussein's regime and protect mass graves of victims, a human rights watchdog charged Thursday, saying that could affect the trials of the former Iraqi dictator and his colleagues.

Coalition forces failed to stop people stealing thousands of official documents in the months after the March 2003 invasion, Human Rights Watch says in a report, ''Iraq: The State of the Evidence.'' The U.S.-led troops also failed to stop people from damaging some of the more than 250 mass graves in their search for the remains of relatives, the report said.

Reuters in London is reporting that a U.S. soldier has been kidnapped by Iraqi insurgents. The military has not released any details denies it yet. [Via Drudge and Raw Story]

Following an exchange of gunfire at an office in western Baghdad, believed to be that of a Saudi company, four people, including an American, were kidnapped. No additional details yet, stay tuned.

The Pentagon has extended the service of 6,500 troops in Iraq. The decision was made October 16. Were they waiting until after the soldiers had sent in their absentee ballots to announce the decision?

The Bush Campaign would love us to focus on Osama and terror until the election. It's not going to happen. Not when news like this comes up...8 U.S. Marines were killed in Iraq Saturday.

How many more?