What’s going on in Fallujah?

It would seem that hostility to the United States has not waned in Fallujah. The attack on General John Abizaid , the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, would seem to confirm this. This reporter’s first-hand account of the attack contains this priceless passage:

Abizaid was walking about, seemingly unfazed, talking to some of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps members he had come to visit. I grabbed my camera and began shooting pictures of him talking to an Iraqi commander. I noticed Abizaid, an expert in Arab affairs, was speaking in Arabic. He told me later the commander said, with regard to the attack: “This is Fallujah. What do you expect?”

This would seem to be Juan Cole’s assessment as well. Certainly the increase in attacks in recent weeks is fueling fears of Balkanization. However, the Chicago Tribune has another story on Fallujah today suggesting that the situation might not be as bleak as first thought:

The reputation of Fallujah is simple and fearsome: It’s known as the toughest town in Iraq, the epicenter of the insurgency, the place where more than 35 American soldiers have lost their lives. An attack Thursday–when a top U.S. general’s visit was disrupted by rocket-propelled grenades–added more evidence to the indictment. But something else is happening in Fallujah as residents look for a less violent way to get the Americans out. This city on the banks of the Euphrates River and at the edge of the desert is taking small but critical steps toward choosing its own government…. there are signs of progress in a city where Hussein recruited the shock troops of his military and industrial complex. Water has been restored to 80 percent of the city and there is more electricity now than immediately after major combat, although blackouts still occur. And there is growing acceptance here that Fallujah has to join the rest of Iraq–at least politically–to secure a fair share of reconstruction cash. “I am not cooperating with Americans; I am dealing with them,” said Mohammed Hassan al-Balwa, president of Fallujah’s provisional city council. “We need to help ourselves.”

Read the whole article. UPDATE: The New York Times has more.