Violent deaths decrease in Iraq
The number of civilians suffering violent deaths in Iraq fell by almost two-thirds this year according to a campaign group which released new figures today.
Iraq Body Count (IBC) said as many as 9,028 civilians died this year due to violence, compared with up to 24,295 in 2007 and 27,599 in 2006.
But IBC said every statistic was “a human life violently ended, none of whom are any less a victim for having been killed during a ’downward trend’ in violence”.
“What remains certain is that Iraq under occupation is fraught with dangers for the civilian population, dangers which will never entirely go away before the occupation does,” the report Post-Surge Violence: Its Nature and Extent concluded.
IBC attributed 1,359 civilian deaths to Coalition troops in 2007 and 638 in 2006.
Anti-occupation forces were said to be responsible for 3,085 civilian deaths in 2007 and 2,842 in 2006.
The majority of the remainder are classed as deaths caused by unknown perpetrators.
The latest figures equate to 25 civilian deaths per day in 2008.
IBC has been recording civilian deaths from violence since the 2003 invasion by Coalition troops.
