They characterized the insurgents who remain as less suicidal than those who fought the initial battle, using a newly discovered tunnel system or knocking holes in walls to move unseen and avoid American troops.

"Pretty much the ones who have wanted to be martyrs outright have been killed and the ones who remain are the smart ones, or the ones who have been able to avoid our clearing forces, so we continue to clear, to back clear, and to clear again," said Lt. Col. Daniel Wilson, deputy for current operations for the 1st Marine Division.

"We know that they're slithering around in the tunnels from one place to another," Wilson said.

The U.S. military claims that 1,200 insurgents were killed in the weeklong invasion to destroy what were believed to be the insurgents' main bases in Iraq. At least 50 Marines and eight Iraqi soldiers also died. No civilian casualty figures have been released.

Weeks later, the city is in ruins. The bodies of dogs lie in the streets, piles of rubble line the roads and what little infrastructure there was before the onslaught has been shattered.

The Marine officials said the insurgents are far weaker now, pointing to a 60 percent drop in the number of attacks in western Iraq from the week before the Nov. 8 invasion to last week. They said a cordon is keeping insurgents from coming back in large numbers and that the destruction of the guerrillas' Fallujah bases would help counter the new threats ahead of Iraq's Jan. 30 elections.

"It hinders their ability to interfere with the election process and it hinders their ability to discredit the government because they're not able to set up these bases like they had in Fallujah," Marine Maj. Jim West, an intelligence planning officer, said at a briefing with two other Marine officials. "They don't have a safe haven where they can conduct the horrific torture that they did."

Meanwhile, a government official said interim Iraqi authorities are discussing emergency measures to ensure representation in the National Assembly from the Sunni Triangle region if security fears result in low voter turnout in cities like Fallujah.

"If voting numbers are low in the triangle, we are considering whether to directly appoint leaders from that region to the National Assembly or give those who are elected veto rights," the Iraqi official said on condition of anonymity.

He declined to elaborate, but the measures being considered reflect government concern that the volatile security situation in cities like Fallujah and Ramadi could prevent ordinary Iraqis from voting.

Fallujah was believed to be the focal point for kidnappings and beheadings orchestrated by Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's terror group al-Qaida in Iraq. Al-Zarqawi is believed to have slipped out ahead of the U.S. ground assault.

Rubble-clearing and reconstruction is under way in Fallujah to prepare for civilians to return soon. Iraqi officials have said that could come as early as next week. The officials who spoke Friday said they were thinking "sooner rather than later" but had not yet recommended that people go back.

"There's always the pressure to speed things up, we would really like to see it happen as quickly as possible as well, but not at the risk of the lives of the citizens and the residents of Fallujah," Wilson said.

They stressed that the final decision rests with the Iraqis, who have plans in place for humanitarian assistance, shelter, and water and fuel distribution.

In preparation for elections next month, the officials said there were several options to make sure people in Fallujah can vote. The city has been far too dangerous to get the registration process going.

West said it was possible a polling station would be set up outside Fallujah for residents who have not yet returned to the city.

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