Camp Lejeune, N.C. ? President Bush played both commander- and comforter-in-chief Thursday, meeting with families of fallen Marines after warning their comrades that the end of war with Iraq may be the toughest part.

Bush and first lady Laura Bush shared hugs and tears with five bereaved families, witnesses said, the first such encounter the president has had since tanks started rolling into Iraq.

“He cried with us,” said Ginger Ford, whose brother, 21-year-old Marine Lance Cpl. Patrick Nixon, died in a March 23 ambush. “He assured us that my brother was very important and he would not be forgotten.”

Speaking earlier to thousands of camouflage-clad Marines, Bush said the sacrifices and sufferings must be redeemed by the fall of Saddam Hussein’s “brutal regime.”

Now that American-led troops have advanced to the outskirts of Baghdad, a confident-sounding Bush said the “vise is closing” but that Marine-style toughness was needed to finish the job.

“There is work ahead for our coalition, for the American armed forces, and for the United States Marines,” Bush said. “Having traveled hundreds of miles, we will now go the last 200 yards.”

Aides said the phrase “the last 200 yards” has special meaning for Marines, symbolizing the belief that the hardest part of a difficult journey often comes at the finish.

In selecting this base in the Carolina coastal pines, Bush picked the hardest-hit branch of the military. More than two-thirds of the Americans killed in Iraq are Marines, and at least 13 of them came from Camp Lejeune.

President Bush shows his support for a crowd of Marines and their families at Camp Lejeune, N.C. Bush also met privately Thursday with families of Marines killed in action during his visit. Approximately 17,500 troops have been deployed from Camp Lejeune in the past six months.

During the private meeting in the annex of the base chapel, the president and first lady went around the room to speak privately with about 20 family members, witnesses said. The survivors included a 2-week-old baby and 6-week-old twin girls.

At various points, the Bushes said the Marines who gave their lives toward a more peaceful world were surely in heaven. Family members said their loved ones felt honored to serve their country as Marines.

Ford said her brother, who is from Gallatin, Tenn., saw his job as an obligation: “He felt like we wouldn’t have the freedom and the luxuries we have today if people hadn’t fought for them before us.”

During his public remarks, Bush said, “Camp Lejeune has lost some good Marines,” and, “no one who falls will be forgotten by this grateful nation.”

“We honor their service to America, and we pray their families will receive God’s comfort and God’s grace,” he said.