BAGHDAD — Iraq’s prime minister urged Fallujah residents on Monday to expel al-Qaeda militants to avoid an all-out battle in the besieged city, a sign that the government could be paving the way for an imminent military push in an attempt to rout hard-line Sunni insurgents challenging its territorial control over the western approaches to Baghdad.
The militants’ seizure of Fallujah and parts of nearby Ramadi, once bloody battlegrounds for U.S. troops, has marked the most direct challenge to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government since the departure of American forces two years ago. The United States and longtime rival Iran view the escalating conflict with alarm, with neither wanting to see al-Qaeda take firmer root inside Iraq.
In Washington, the White House is pushing back against critics who argue that the U.S. pullout from Iraq is to blame for escalating sectarian violence. The administration has ruled out sending in American troops but recently delivered dozens of Hellfire missiles to help bolster Iraqi forces.
Tehran signaled Monday that it is willing to follow suit, saying it is ready to help Iraq battle al-Qaeda “terrorists” by sending military equipment and advisers should Baghdad ask for it. It is unclear whether Baghdad would take up the Iranian offer, made by Gen. Mohammad Hejazi, the Iranian Army deputy chief-of-staff. Hejazi ruled out the sending of ground troops.
Any direct Iranian help would exacerbate sectarian tensions fueling Iraq’s conflict, as Iraqi Sunnis accuse Tehran of backing what they say are their Shiite-led government’s unfair policies against them.
Iraqi government troops have surrounded Fallujah, which was overrun by fighters from al-Qaeda’s Iraq branch last week. The city is just 40 miles west of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. It is in the vast Sunni-dominated and largely desert province of Anbar, which borders Syria, where groups linked to al-Qaeda are among the most formidable fighters among the rebels trying to topple President Bashar Assad.
Al-Maliki did not say how he expects Fallujah residents and pro-government tribesmen to push out the militants. In his message, broadcast over state TV, he also urged Iraqi troops to avoid targeting residential areas. Dozens of families have begun fleeing Fallujah to nearby towns, crammed in cars loaded with their belongings.
