Baghdad, Sept 10, SPA -- Iraqi and US forces have launched a major operation to try to retake the northern town of Talafar from rebels, the Iraqi government says. Troops went house to house and combed the streets, the Associated Press reports. Gunfire could be heard from one area of the town. The BBC's Jonathan Charles in Baghdad says this is the biggest operation against rebels since the assault on Falluja last year. The offensive has been expected for some time and the authorities earlier urged Talafar's 200,000 residents to leave. Most of Talafar's residents are thought to have fled "At 0200 [local time] today, acting on my orders, Iraqi forces commenced an operation to remove all remaining terrorist elements from the city of Talafar," Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari said in a statement. "These forces are operating with support from the Multi-National Force," he said. --SPA1242 Local Time 0942 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/288294