NBC Nightly News open - 2004-11-08

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (YouTube automatic captions)

[0:02] Keep watching for your chance to win the

[0:03] coolest snowbird ever.

[0:07] >> Good evening to you. Good evening.

[0:10] Attack on Fallujah. Thousands of

[0:12] American forces attack Iraqi rebels on

[0:14] the ground and from the air tonight. The

[0:16] mission, the endgame, the risks.

[0:20] Gay marriage. The election behind him.

[0:22] The president backs a constitutional

[0:23] amendment banning gay marriage. How hard

[0:26] will he press that fight?

[0:28] lifeline. This week, our women's health

[0:31] series tonight. A vaccine that could

[0:33] protect against cervical cancer

[0:36] and a fish story that is scaring

[0:38] scientists. Fish with male and female

[0:41] characteristics and concerns about what

[0:43] that could mean about our drinking

[0:45] water.

[0:50] From NBC News World Headquarters in New

[0:53] York, this is NBC Nightly News with Tom

[0:57] Brokaw.

[0:58] >> Good evening. It is the largest single

[1:00] military offensive in more than a year

[1:02] in Iraq and the most critical. Under

[1:04] heavy fire, more than 15,000 American

[1:07] forces and Iraqi units as well are

[1:09] moving slowly into Fallujah. The Sunni

[1:12] city, which has been a major sanctuary

[1:13] for insurgents for months now. The

[1:16] American air bombardment to soften up

[1:18] the targets has been heavy. Ground

[1:20] fighting sporadic and the worst is

[1:22] expected once the troops move deeper

[1:24] into the heart of the city. Fallujah is

[1:27] in the heart of the so-called Sunni

[1:29] triangle and for months Iraqi officials

[1:32] have pleaded with residents there to

[1:34] kick the insurgents out. But now time

[1:37] has run out. NBC's Richard Engel begins

[1:39] from Baghdad tonight.

[1:42] The full weight of some 4,000 US and

[1:45] Iraqi troops bore down on Fallujah

[1:47] today. US Marines fighting from

[1:49] doorways, rarely seeing the insurgents

[1:52] shooting back from behind heaps of

[1:54] rubble. The day began with a buildup,

[1:57] creating a formidable battle line. The

[1:59] Marines were anxious.

[2:01] >> Uh just ready to go in there and get it

[2:03] over with.

[2:04] The troops dug in and set mortars,

[2:07] >> but the insurgents fired mortars, too,

[2:10] all day long.

[2:11] >> They know we're here dropping mortars on

[2:13] us. Uh continue changing our our

[2:15] location, so they uh can't get one

[2:18] directly on us.

[2:19] >> Iraq's interim prime minister, Ayad

[2:21] Alawi, says the offensive is necessary

[2:23] to secure the country before elections

[2:26] in January. Today, he visited Iraqi

[2:28] troops in Fallujah, psyching them up.

[2:32] So far, commanders say the battle has

[2:34] gone according to schedule.

[2:37] >> It began last night. Marines and Iraqi

[2:39] commandos crossed the Euphrates River,

[2:42] taking control of two bridges and a

[2:44] hospital. Today, Marines and soldiers

[2:46] encircled Fallujah, then invaded

[2:48] insurgent strongholds in the Ocari and

[2:51] Jolan districts in the northeast and

[2:53] west, and then seized the train station.

[2:56] In all, up to 15,000 American forces are

[2:59] taking part from the first Marine

[3:01] Expeditionary Force and three Army

[3:04] divisions as well as more than 2,000

[3:06] Iraqi troops. NBC's Kevin Sites is in

[3:09] Fallujah embedded with the third

[3:11] battalion, First Marines.

[3:13] >> We've been hearing loud explosions. Uh

[3:14] there has been a wide array of weapons

[3:17] used uh in this offensive. Uh air

[3:20] strikes have been used. 2,000 lb bombs

[3:23] have been dropped on the city today.

[3:25] Analysts say the objective of all this

[3:27] is to deny insurgents a base to get them

[3:30] moving and vulnerable. But some fear

[3:33] many of the insurgents have already left

[3:35] Paluguja.

[3:36] >> They let the young, inexperienced

[3:38] fanatics uh fight the rear guard action

[3:41] and the important command and control

[3:43] elements and the real heavy fighters

[3:45] slip away. Today, insurgents were

[3:47] attacking elsewhere. In Baghdad, killing

[3:50] three people near the airport and

[3:52] detonating a car bomb behind a church,

[3:54] killing three more, wounding dozens. And

[3:57] tonight in Baghdad, it's become too

[3:59] dangerous to even turn on the lights as

[4:02] explosions and gunfire have been heard

[4:04] all around