Arab Press Sabotaged First Fallujah Attack

Propaganda from so-called "news" outlets al Jazeera and al Arabiya was cited, in a leaked secret intelligence assessment, for cutting short the first attack on Fallujah in April 2004.

From the report, via a story in the Washington Times:

"The outcome of a purely military contest in Fallujah was always a foregone conclusion — coalition victory," read the assessment, prepared by analysts at the U.S. Army's National Ground Intelligence Center, or NGIC.

"But Fallujah was not simply a military action, it was a political and informational battle. ... The effects of media coverage, enemy information operations and the fragility of the political environment conspired to force a halt to U.S. military operations," concluded the assessment.

Of course, American media outlets did their part as well, passing on the al Jazeera and al Arabiya reports as if they were actually coming from journalists [emphasis added]:

The authors said the press was "crucial to building political pressure to halt military operations," from the Iraqi government and the Coalition Provisional Authority, which resulted in a "unilateral cease-fire" by U.S. forces on April 9, after just five days of combat operations...

Crucial to the failure, the authors said, was the role of the Arabic satellite news channels Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya.

From the report itself, as published by Wikileaks, are facts that never seemed to find their way into al Jazeera or al Arabiya "news" reports:

• (S//REL TO USA, MCFI) Insurgents deliberately fought from sensitive areas such as mosques, schools, and residential areas. Mosques served as command centers, fighting positions, weapon caches, rallying points, and hospitals. Minarets were used by snipers, observers, and forward observers.

Thanks to Commodore Lowly Knave of The Pirate Armada.