U.S., Iraqi civilian deaths fall sharply

[FVZA_Colonel]

Source: Associated Press

By STEVEN R. HURST, Associated Press Writer
33 minutes ago



BAGHDAD - Deaths among American forces and Iraqi civilians fell dramatically last month to their lowest levels in more than a year, according to figures compiled by the U.S. military, the Iraqi government and The Associated Press.

The decline signaled a U.S. success in bringing down violence in Baghdad and surrounding regions since Washington completed its infusion of 30,000 more troops on June 15.

A total of 64 American forces died in September — the lowest monthly toll since July 2006.

The decline in Iraqi civilian deaths was even more dramatic, falling from 1,975 in August to at least 988 last month, a decline of 50 percent, according to an AP tally. The civilian death toll has not been so low since June 2006, when 847 Iraqis died.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071001/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

[Xipe Totec]

1. Sounds like Blackwater is on vacation

no targets, no casualties, no collateral damage.

[movonne]

2. Well maybe because they are dead or left the country..this is what

our administration wants...then we can keep Iraq for ourselves...

[Maq]

3. It don't COUNT till we post it DOD

No one DIED since Thursday per DOD

10/01/2007: New DoD Predatory Lending Regulation Takes Effect
09/29/2007: Detainee Transfer Announced
09/28/2007: Detainee Transfer Announced
09/27/2007: DoD Identifies Army Casualty
09/27/2007: Airman Missing In Action From WWII is Identified
09/27/2007: DoD Identifies Army Casualty
09/27/2007: General Officer Announcement
09/27/2007: Flag Officer Assignment
09/26/2007: DoD Identifies Navy Casualty

SOURCE: http://www.defenselink.mil/releases /


Pfc. Mathew D. Taylor, 21, of Cameron Park, Calif., died Sept. 26 in San Antonio of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle July 23 in Sarobi District, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy.
Reported by the DOD above on 27 Sept 2007. Release No. 1163-07, September 27, 2007


Is something FISHY going on here?

Mon Oct-01-07 11:54 AM
Original message by Maq

[Maq]

9. DOD musta read this thread 110th female death today

Spc Ciara Durkin

Irish-born US soldier dies in Afghanistan

The United States military is investigating the shooting dead of an Irish-born soldier in Afghanistan late last week.
Spc. Ciara M. Durkin, 30, of Quincy, Mass., died Sept. 28 at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, of injuries suffered from a non-combat related incident. She was assigned to the 726th Finance Battalion, Massachusetts Army National Guard, West Newton, Mass. Release No. 1171-07, October 01, 2007


newspaper Boston Herald data below:

Ciara Durkin (29) from Quincy, Massachusetts, originally from Connemara, Ireland, was reported as killed in action on September 27th in Afghanistan. She was a member of the Massachusetts Army National Guard, and had been serving in Afghanistan for almost a year. Ciara left Ireland with her parents, Tommy and Angela, when she was nine years old, but returned for a time to attend secondary school in Carraroe.

[Contrary1]

4. I don't consider a less than 20% drop "dramatic",

but fewer deaths are a good thing.

47 more and it will be the highest number killed in a calendar year for Bush's war. We're averaging 2 deaths a day, so with 91 days left, I don't think he'll have much to crow about by year's end.

http://icasualties.org/oif/

On Edit:

Reported U.S. Deaths Pending DoD Confirmation: 4
Post Iraq Deaths Not Confirmed By the DoD: 2
U.S. Deaths: Self-Inflicted as reported by the DoD as of 8/31/2007: 122

[jordi_fanclub]

5. After the dramatic last FOUR months... (the highests yr-yr)

Seems the dramatic "fall sharply" maybe could be only a break in the usual BUllSHit!

[ohio2007]

13. the #'s are sharply down looking at this sites record keeping

They've been keeping a count since day one;



http://www.icasualties.org/oif/IraqiDeaths.aspx

Going from Aug 06 to Sept '07 for Iraqi
civilian deaths;

Aug-06 2733
Sep-06 3389 ( holy month of Ramadan )
Oct-06 1315
Nov-06 1741
Dec-06 1629
Jan-07 1711
Feb-07 2864
Mar-07 2762
Apr-07 1521
May-07 1782

Jun-07 1148
Jul-07 1458
Aug-07 1598
Sep-07 746 ( holy month of Ramadam )



usually, the month of Ramadan is a very bloody one. The #'s are going down unless as was posted earlier, the people who can be killed easily have been killed. Maybe the population is shrinking if the birth rate is being out paced by the death rate.

[TwilightGardener]

6. Good news--remember, Chimpy said our troops can "Return on Success"--

since we've, uh, ELIMINATED a lot of our opposition in Iraq, I'd say we were successful! The better the news, the more the Dems in Congress need to push for serious troop withdrawal--time for the Iraqis to stand up, while we start standing down. The less violent Iraq becomes, the more we'll see what the REAL rationale for our continued occupation is...

[Lone_Star_Dem]

7. There are now over 4 million displaced Iraqi citizens

They've fled the fighting in an attempt to stay alive.

Now they're dying of things like disease, malnutrition and exposure, rather than bullets and bombs.

However, since those deaths aren't on an official government report, then the deaths are down in Iraq.

[Hulk]

8. Yeah, sure...I think we are winning....??

I don't have the figures here to do the math, but how many have died as a result of our occupation so far? A million, more or less? How many have left the country....fled to become refugees in neighboring nations?....I hear 4 million? How many have left their neighborhoods to go somewhere safers, leaving all behind, or at least their normal lives behind?....no numbers given.

After so much death, displacement, I would hope the numbers would go down just out of sheer lack of targets. Get real. As for the US....great!! I think there should be ZERO deaths on US troops. Bring them home now!!

[Lone_Star_Dem]

11. Estimated deaths due to the invasion are just over 1 million.

Link: http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/iraq/iraqdeaths.html


The UN estimates that over 4 million Iraqis have been displaced by violence in their country, the vast majority of which have fled since 2003. Over 2.2 million have vacated their homes for safer areas within Iraq, 1.5 million are now living in Syria, and over 1 million refugees inhabit Jordan, Iran, Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen, and Turkey. Most Iraqis are determined to be resettled to Europe or North America, and few consider return to Iraq an option. With no legal work options in their current host countries, Iraqis are already exploring the use of false documents to migrate to Western nations.
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Lone_Star_Dem/37

[coalition_unwilling]

10. The decline does not signal anything remotely like a U.S.

"success in bringing down violence in Baghdad and surrounding regions." We have already failed irredeemably there. Any temporary deviation in mortality from month-to-month reflects the decisions of the various components of the Iraqi Resistance and has very little to do with us. We are now simply one militia among many and we no longer call the shots in Iraq and barely even call them in the so-called Green Zone.

Hitler and his cohort said much the same optimistic things about the battle of Stalingrad, even as Zhukov was encircling an entire German Army and cutting it off from its supplies lines. Eventually, some 250,000 German soldiers were captured at Stalingrad.

[Zandor]

12. Excellent news n/t

[Maq]

14. correction 72 died in Sept 06 and 72 in Sept 2007

Misleading the Public or lying. "A total of 64 American forces died in September — the lowest monthly toll since July 2006."

Sgt. 1st Class Randy L. Johnson, 34, of Washington D.C., died Sept. 27 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He was assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany.
Release number 1170-07, 01 Oct 07

Spc. Ciara M. Durkin, 30, of Quincy, Mass., died Sept. 28 at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, of injuries suffered from a non-combat related incident. She was assigned to the 726th Finance Battalion, Massachusetts Army National Guard, West Newton, Mass.
Release number 1171-07, 01 Oct 07

Sgt. 1st Class James D. Doster, 37, of Pine Bluff, Ark., died Sept. 29 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive devise and small arms fire. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.
Release number 1172-07, 01 Oct 07

Staff Sgt. Donnie D. Dixon, 37, of Miami, died Sept. 29 in Baloor, Iraq, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire. He was assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.
Release number 1173-07, 01 Oct 07

Sgt. Zachary D. Tellier, 31, of Charlotte, N.C., died Sept. 29 at Firebase Wilderness, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire. He was assigned to the 4th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.
Release number 1174-07, 01 Oct 07

Sgt. Robert T. Ayres III, 23, of Los Angeles, died Sept. 29 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire. He was assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany.
Release number 1175-07, 01 Oct 07


The above six if reported in September 2007 as per their death date would have made the Sept 07 count of 66 equal the 2006 Sept count of 72. Fudging the numbers again Georgie Bush. DOD deliberately did not count any deaths since Thursday 27 Sept 07 but put off posting the accurate number till 01 Oct 2007. Tonight.

2006 62 55 31 76 69 61 43 65 (Sept 2006, 72) 106 70 112
2007 83 81 81 104 126 101 78 84 (Sept 2007, 66) 0 0 0



Edited to correct month cited;