Operation Iraqi Freedom: Iraqi casualties

Since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the matter of Iraqi casualties -- a body count, that is the number of Iraqis killed in action (KIA) -- has not been forthcoming from U.S. military officials.


 * "We don't do body counts." -- General Tommy R. Franks, U.S. Central Command.

Also see "Iraqi Body Count project" in the Wikipedia.

Sectarian deathcount methodology 2007
Multi-National Force-Iraq's methodology for calculating a sectarian death count "identifies a number of factors, necessarily subjective, that help analysts determine whether an attack or a death should be considered sectarian. Ethno-sectarian violence is defined as violence 'conducted by one ethnic/religious group against another ethnic/religious group, where the primary motivation for the event is based on ethnic or religious reasons.' MNF-I analysts consider the location of the attack -- whether it took place in a mixed area or a homogeneous one -- and the type of attack in order to determine ethnic or sectarian violence.

"Interestingly, attacks against 'same-sect civilians,' U.S. forces, the Iraqi government or Iraqi security forces 'are excluded and not defined as sectarian attacks.' So even though Sunni insurgent groups loathe the Shiite-controlled government, insurgent attacks on it aren't considered sectarian violence.

"Additionally, MNF-I calculates that the use of suicide vests, car bombs and IEDs strongly indicate Sunni perpetrators; and reasons that attacks using those methods on 'medical centers, market places or religious symbols, mosques, religious gatherings, stores/restaurants, and housing areas' typically indicate sectarian violence, since those entities are primarily used by 'one ethnic/sectarian group.' MNF-I acknowledges that in these attacks 'there may have been Sunnis killed or injured,' and though it says it excludes 'same-sect civilians' from the tally, these are counted as sectarian attacks.

"For executions, murders and kidnappings -- situations in which sectarianism may be difficult to determine -- MNF-I says it uses 'host nation' reporting in addition to its own. Many media and non-governmental organizations consider information on casualties released by the Iraqi ministries to be self-serving, misleading or contradictory," Spencer Ackerman reported September 21, 2007, for TPMmuckraker.

Also see the "MNF-I Ethno-sectarian Violence Methodology" posted in the ''Talking Points Memo Document Collection.

Two-year anniversary 2005
March 19, 2005, marked the second anniversary of the shock and awe phase of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. FAIR reported March 21, 2005, on the media outlets who "took stock of the war's death toll," although FAIR opines that the "national newscasts undercounted the most dramatic loss of life: the deaths of Iraqi civilians."

For example, FAIR cites the March 18, 2005, CBS Evening News report by Byron Pitts, who said "Today, U.S. deaths number more than 1,500. There are no exact figures for Iraqi fatalities, but estimates are for every American killed, 11 Iraqis died.'"

"In other words," FAIR states, "more than 16,500 Iraqi deaths."

The estimate given March 18, 2005, by NBC's Brian Williams was "slightly higher": 1,513 American military personnel killed, 11,344 injured, "and many of those are amputees." As for estimates of the Iraqi death toll, he said that they are "hard to come by officially, but the civilian toll is thought to range from 17,000 to nearly 20,000 dead and beyond."

Although ABC World News Tonight "did not appear to offer a similar count," Peter Jennings reported March 3, 2005, that "There are no official numbers of Iraqi civilian casualties, but Iraqi Body Count, an independent web-site that compiles media reports of the deaths there, says as many as 18,000 Iraqis may have been killed."

FAIR writes that, "According to a study published in the respected British medical journal The Lancet [October 29, 2004], about 100,000 Iraqi civilians have died as a result of the war. The majority of deaths were due to violence, primarily as a result of U.S.-led military action," although "one of the researchers on the project said that the estimate is likely a conservative one," according to the October 29, 2004, New York Times.

FAIR concludes that "It is likely that many if not most civilian casualties will go unreported by the media."

A change in reporting: November 2003
Some change apparently began after November 2003, the deadliest month of fighting in Iraq to date, "with 111 members of the U.S.-led coalition killed."

Patrick J. McDonnell wrote in the December 2, 2003 Los Angeles Times
 * "...it seemed clear that the change was part of an overall effort to present American forces in a more dynamic and assertive manner -- not as a plodding occupying army taking steady casualties without inflicting damage.


 * "'We've been killing and capturing bushels of these guys, but no one was talking about it,' said one senior military officer, who asked that his name not be used but was delighted with the new approach. 'This is a conscious change in policy…. For a while there it was beginning to look like only Americans were being killed.'


 * "The shift comes as tens of thousands of U.S. troops have mounted high-profile offensives across the nation, with tough monikers like Operation Iron Hammer and Operation Ivy Cyclone II. Spokesmen have made forceful remarks about insurgents facing certain death or capture if they attack U.S. troops."


 * "There is still no running total of how many insurgent combatants have been killed by U.S. forces in Iraq. ... The Army is only providing day-to-day numbers for each fight in which an attacker is killed. Still, the insurgent losses tend to overwhelm U.S. casualty totals."

Related SourceWatch articles
In particular see:


 * civil war in Iraq
 * Iraq Coalition Casualty Statistics
 * Iraqi insurgency
 * Task Force 121
 * troop surge in Iraq
 * United States used weapons of mass destruction in Iraq
 * violence in the Middle East

Websites

 * Iraqi Body Count.net website.

2003

 * Edward Epstein, "How Many Iraqis Died? We May Never Know. Some observers are pressuring Pentagon to put forth an informed estimate," San Francisco Chronicle (Common Dreams), May 3, 2003.
 * "AP Tallies 3,240 Civilian Deaths in Iraq," Associated Press (Common Dreams), June 11, 2003.
 * Vivienne Walt, "Bitterness Grows in Iraq Over Deaths of Civilians," Boston Globe (Common Dreams), August 4, 2003.
 * Robyn Dixon, "U.S. Limits Payments to Kin of Slain Iraqi Civilians. Compensation is possible only in cases of wrongdoing or negligence. Fatal errors and combat-related deaths are excluded," Los Angeles Times (Common Dreams), August 4, 2003.
 * James W. Crawley, "Officials Confirm Dropping Firebombs on Iraqi Troops. Results are 'remarkably similar' to using napalm," San Diego Union-Tribune (Common Dreams), August 5, 2003.
 * Karen Matthews, "Human Rights Watch Documents 20 Civilian Deaths in Postwar Baghdad; Dozens More Reported," Associated Presss (Common Dreams), October 21, 2003.
 * "Baghdad Reels Under Mass Terror Attack from Series of Spectacular Bombings," Agence France Presse (Common Dreams), October 27, 2003.
 * Suzanne Goldenberg, "Up to 15,000 People Killed in Invasion, Claims Thinktank," Guardian (UK) (Common Dreams), October 29, 2003: "The report, by Project on Defense Alternatives, which is part of the Commonwealth Institute, a research institute from Cambridge, Massachusetts, offers the most comprehensive account so far of how many Iraqis died."
 * Jim Lobe, "Iraqi Death Toll, Health Perils Assessed by Medical Group," OneWorld.net (Common Dreams), November 11, 2003: "Between 21,000 and 55,000 people have died as a result of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and its aftermath, according to a new report that also warned of rapidly deteriorating health conditions for those who survived."
 * Vivienne Walt, "Iraqi Families Want Retribution for Deaths. Some Charge U.S. Soldiers Unjustly Shoot, Kill Civilians," San Francisco Chronicle (Common Dreams), November 24, 2003.
 * Rory McCarthy, "US Pays Up for Fatal Iraq Blunders. Over 10,000 Claims But Families Must Waive Rights," Guardian (UK) (Common Dreams), November 26, 2003.
 * "Devastation in Iraqi Town as US Responds to Ambush with Deadly Fire," Agence France Presse (Common Dreams), December 1, 2003.
 * "Iraqis Dispute Samarra Battle Casualties," Guardian (UK) (Common Dreams), December 1, 2003.
 * Patrick J. McDonnell, "US Reports Insurgent Death Toll. Long hesitant to release numbers, fearing comparison to the days of Vietnam, the military seems to be doing so now to appear effective," Los Angeles Times (Common Dreams), December 2, 2003.
 * Paul Wiseman, "Cluster bombs kill in Iraq, even after shooting ends," USA Today, December 11, 2003.
 * Niko Price, "Iraq to Stop Counting Civilian Dead," Associated Press (truthout), December 11, 2003.
 * Thom Shanker, "Rights Group Faults U.S. Over Cluster Bombs," New York Times, December 12, 2003.
 * Jim Lobe, "Cluster Bombs, Decapitation Bombing Killed Hundreds, Says Human Rights Watch," OneWorld.net (Common Dreams), December 14, 2003.
 * John Sloboda, "We must honour the dead. Thousands of Iraqi civilians have died as a result of the occupation. So why is there no official death toll?" Guardian (UK), December 19, 2003.

2004

 * David Randall, "The Terrible Human Cost of Bush and Blair's Military Adventure: 10,000 Civilian Deaths. UK and US authorities discourage counting of deaths as a result of the conflict. But academics are monitoring the toll and have identified a grim new milestone, ... making the continuing conflict the most deadly war for non-combatants waged by the West since the Vietnam war more than 30 years ago," Independent (UK) (Common Dreams), February 8, 2004. Also see IraqBodyCount.net
 * Lakshmi, "10,000 Iraqi Civilians Dead," AlterNet, February 10, 2004.
 * Brian Bender, "Report says military distorts war deaths," Boston Globe, February 18, 2004: "By refusing to make public its estimates of civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Pentagon has undercut international support for the US campaigns in those countries and has made the postwar stabilization of the two societies more difficult, according to an independent report to be released today [by the Project on Defense Alternatives, a nonpartisan think tank in Washington], that accuses the Pentagon of appearing indifferent to the civilian cost of war."
 * Daniel Cooney, "5,500 Iraqis Killed, Morgue Records Show," Associated Press (China Daily), May 23, 2004: "More than 5,500 Iraqis died violently in just Baghdad and three provinces in the first 12 months of the occupation, an Associated Press survey found. The toll from both criminal and political violence ran dramatically higher than violent deaths before the war, according to statistics from morgues. ... There are no reliable figures for places like Fallujah and Najaf that have seen surges in fighting since early April. ... Indeed, there is no precise count for Iraq (news - web sites) as a whole on how many people have been killed, nor is there a breakdown of deaths caused by the different sorts of attacks. The U.S. military, the occupation authority and Iraqi government agencies say they don't have the ability to track civilian deaths."

2005

 * Klim McPherson, "Counting the dead in Iraq: We need to know how many people have died," British Medical Journal, March 12, 2005.
 * "Survey: 25,000 civilians killed in Iraq war. 42,500 injuries also recorded by Iraq Body Count," CNN, July 19, 2005.