The Nazzal general hospital had been built with funds from Saudi donors who belonged to an Islamic-Saudi relief agency, Doctor Ali Hayad told AFP.

The building had been ready for two weeks, fully furnished with vital medical equipment and medicine. It also housed an analytical laboratory.

Fallujah, a Sunni Muslim bastion 50 kilometres (30 miles) west of Baghdad, has come under an increasing storm of US aerial bombardments in recent weeks as US troops turn up the heat of insurgents who are believed to be holed up inside.