April 30, 2007 -- The Count
For Whom the Bell Tolls.
Tomorrow is the fourth anniversary of the “mission accomplished” announcement – the end of major combat operations in Iraq as proclaimed by President Bush and the end of major combat in Afghanistan as announced by then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
In the first 6 weeks of the Iraqi operation, 139 U.S. troops died.
In the ensuing 4 years, 3,212 more U.S. troops have died, more than 24,000 have been wounded, and two remain missing.
In Iraq:
U.S. fatalities totaled 104, making April 2007 the deadliest month so far this year and the sixth most deadly month for U.S. troops .
Total U.S. fatalities since March 2003 now stand at 3,351.
The 3,000th U.S. fatality occurred December 31, 2006. The most recent time frame over which U.S. fatalities rose by 500 was 6 months and 2 weeks – from June 15 to December 31, 2006. With 351 deaths since the last “milestone,” with two-thirds of the current 6 month period gone, the fatality rate stands at 70.2% of 500. Translated, at the rate of current casualties, the 3,500th fatality will come in less than 6 months.
UK fatalities in the Iraq war total 146; all other allies have lost 125 killed.
Iraqi security forces killed: 155
Iraqi civilians killed (preliminary): 1,403
Since January 2005, at least 5, 245 Iraqi security personnel have been killed in violence.
A very conservative count of Iraqi civilian deaths in the last 26 months is 28,413
In Afghanistan, U.S. fatalities in 2007 so far are 27, with a total of 384 U.S. fatalities since October 7, 2001.
Coalition casualties this year are 23 and overall stand at 182.
Afghan civilian and security force killed are unknown.
The killing continues.
And the monetary costs keep rising, although a “temporary” hiatus will occur Wednesday when President Bush is expected to veto the latest bill to fund the war.
The dead will not notice.
Tomorrow is the fourth anniversary of the “mission accomplished” announcement – the end of major combat operations in Iraq as proclaimed by President Bush and the end of major combat in Afghanistan as announced by then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
In the first 6 weeks of the Iraqi operation, 139 U.S. troops died.
In the ensuing 4 years, 3,212 more U.S. troops have died, more than 24,000 have been wounded, and two remain missing.
In Iraq:
U.S. fatalities totaled 104, making April 2007 the deadliest month so far this year and the sixth most deadly month for U.S. troops .
Total U.S. fatalities since March 2003 now stand at 3,351.
The 3,000th U.S. fatality occurred December 31, 2006. The most recent time frame over which U.S. fatalities rose by 500 was 6 months and 2 weeks – from June 15 to December 31, 2006. With 351 deaths since the last “milestone,” with two-thirds of the current 6 month period gone, the fatality rate stands at 70.2% of 500. Translated, at the rate of current casualties, the 3,500th fatality will come in less than 6 months.
UK fatalities in the Iraq war total 146; all other allies have lost 125 killed.
Iraqi security forces killed: 155
Iraqi civilians killed (preliminary): 1,403
Since January 2005, at least 5, 245 Iraqi security personnel have been killed in violence.
A very conservative count of Iraqi civilian deaths in the last 26 months is 28,413
In Afghanistan, U.S. fatalities in 2007 so far are 27, with a total of 384 U.S. fatalities since October 7, 2001.
Coalition casualties this year are 23 and overall stand at 182.
Afghan civilian and security force killed are unknown.
The killing continues.
And the monetary costs keep rising, although a “temporary” hiatus will occur Wednesday when President Bush is expected to veto the latest bill to fund the war.
The dead will not notice.
posted by Dan Smith at 3:43 PM
4 Comments:
Laid out like this, the toll is truly horrifying, even with a conservative estimate of Iraqi civilian deaths.
I know this was a summary of casualties, but it's worth noting that Iraq also has a massive refugee problem—both people fleeing the country and people moving from one part of the country to another to escape the violence.
When people are driven from their homes they are highly vulnerable to disease, exposure and privation.
This results in increased death rates for children and the elderly. Iraq has a population of about 26 million before the war and I have heard that because of death and emigration is now about 24 million.
There is quite a bit of confusion about the timeline in the current appropriations that were just vetoed. It is my understanding that the timeline was non-binding. I've heard elsewhere that it was binding. The difference is very important, because if the timeline was not much more than a suggestion, the President vetoed legislation that restricted him in no way. He denied funding to the troops for NO reason and his argument that Democrats are interfering is a red-herring.
Was the withdrawal timeline in the appropriations that were just vetoes binding or not?
The beginning of the withdrawal was "mandatory" with the start date depending on whether or not the Iraqi government had made progress in meeting goals to which it ostensibly is committed. If Bush certified that the Iraqis were meeting the goals, withdrawal would not have to begin until October 1, 2007. If he could not certify, withdrawal was mandated to begin July 1. Either way, however, there was no mandatory date by which all combat troops had to be out. And of course, the whole point is moot as the president's veto was sustained.
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