The senior US Marine commander in Iraq says we have “broken the back” of the mujahideen infestation in Fallujah.

“We feel right now that we have, as I mentioned, broken the back of the insurgency. We’ve taken away this safe haven,” Lt. Gen. John Sattler told reporters at the Pentagon in a video teleconference from Fallujah.

He said that assessment was based on what U.S. officials found in records uncovered in insurgent command posts inside Fallujah. Sattler’s conclusion is far more optimistic than an assessment made shortly before the offensive by Marine intelligence officers, who said the insurgency would rebound if U.S. troop levels in the area were significantly reduced after the offensive.

Sattler made no mention of the intelligence assessment, but he stressed the importance of bringing essential services back on line in Fallujah as quickly as possible and starting reconstruction work.

He said the insurgents are now “scattered” in Iraq with fewer resources available to carry out attacks.

“Each and every time we can force these individuals to go to new locations, expand their circle of friends — if you want to call it that — to include some that they don’t know and they don’t trust, they’ll bring in rookies, more junior people that will, in fact, make mistakes,” he said.

“And that’s why I mentioned that this has disrupted them, I believe — my personal belief — across the country. This is going to make it very hard for them to operate,” he added.