Falluja is now back under the control of Iraqis

Hundreds of Iraqi families are returning to their homes in Falluja, west of the capital, after a month-long siege of the city by US occupation forces.

Aljazeera's correspondent reported that for the first time in days most of Falluja's streets were crowded with people who raised the Iraqi flag and were clearly elated at being allowed to return.

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Hundreds of Iraqis have been killed and homes destroyed

Meanwhile, US marine commanders insist they still remain in control and can move back into the city at any time.

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They also say that while they are happy to put an Iraqi face on security operations in the flashpoint city, the Iraqi troops fall under their overall command.

Senior marine officers have been careful to avoid presenting the move as a withrawal from Falluja, where they lost dozens of men after laying siege to the city on 5 April.

But since the decision to send in the new force, marines have given up their main foothold in the city and pulled back to camps further away. They still have some positions on the outskirts of the city, but are expecting to move out of those within days.

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Early on Saturday, bursts of gunfire ripped through the city as resistance fighters and US occupation forces skirmished intermittently despite a deal to hand security responsibilities back to Iraqis.

Sporadic gunfire continued overnight according to Captain Christopher Logan, a spokesman at the US marines base just outside the city.

April began with images of the macabre killing and mutilation of four U.S. security consultants in Iraq.

It ended with a bitter pill: one of Saddam Hussein's defeated generals getting the Pentagon out of a jam by leading an Iraqi brigade to patrol the besieged city of Fallujah.

In between, it was a cruel and bloody month -- for U.S. soldiers and for Iraqis caught between them and anti-occupation insurgents.

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The images provoked outrage in the Arab world. And in Iraq, there were suggestions that the past few weeks have marked a turning point in attitudes toward the U.S.-led occupation.

"I have this foreboding sense that April and Fallujah will be in the years to come -- as Iraqi fathers and grandfathers tell their children and grandchildren stories -- this mythical, heroic month and place where Iraq stood up to the United States and said, 'We won't stand for the occupation any longer,' " said Charles Pena, director of defence policy studies at the Washington-based Cato Institute.

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"Could it be that this administration has created America's own worst nightmare because of its colossal arrogance, clumsy mistakes and painful misjudgments on virtually every aspect of the war in Iraq?" asked Democratic Senator Robert Byrd.

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The civilian deaths and maiming prompted United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan to criticize U.S. tactics. "Violent military action by an occupying power against inhabitants of an occupied country will only make matters worse," he said.

Inside Fallujah, the damage is stark from the fighting that began after the Americans surrounded the city on April 5 - charred vehicles and debris litter streets lined by burned-out buildings. Residents avoid areas close to front lines, fearing American sniper fire.

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As journalists drove near the front line, two insurgents jumped from a side road and asked them to stop. "You better not go forward. American snipers are active in this area," one said.

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In one of five clinics in the city, Jumhuri, a mentally unstable man, was brought in with a serious bullet wound in his left leg. Dr. Ahmed Ghanem al-Ali said American troops shot the man as he tried to leave Fallujah earlier Friday.In one of five clinics in the city, Jumhuri, a mentally unstable man, was brought in with a serious bullet wound in his left leg. Dr. Ahmed Ghanem al-Ali said American troops shot the man as he tried to leave Fallujah earlier Friday.

Abdel-Qader Fayadh, his legs blown off from a mortar attack April 15, lay in another bed in the clinic.

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"Bush is the biggest criminal in history," he said. "He claims that he wants to fight terrorism so what he is supposed to do is fight himself because he is the leader of terrorists worldwide."

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Earlier in the day, townspeople cheered as Saleh arrived at a checkpoint leading to Fallujah.

"We have very much respect for Gen. Saleh," said a policeman who refused to give his name. "He was a real officer and is an observant Muslim. He did not harm anyone."