Attacks Down, And Deaths Slightly Up In Mosul

After seeing one of the lowest death counts in Mosul since the U.S. invasion in March 2010, casualties crept up slightly in April, while attacks saw a large drop. In March 2010 there were only 27 deaths in what is per capita, the most violence city in Iraq. It was not for a lack of trying however as militants carried out the same average number of attacks that month at 2.16 per day. That compared to February when 66 people were killed, and there were 2.17 attacks per day. For April the number of deaths crept up a little to 43, while attacks dropped to 1.43 per day. That was the lowest number of security incidents since May 2008 when there was 1.35 per day. The types of attacks carried out in April were similar to previous months. Small armed attacks, IEDs/roadside bombs, and bodies found on the street were the most common incidents. In March it was IED/roadside bombs, armed attacks, and grenades. There were also 94 wounded in April as well, in contrast to 125 in March, 109 in February, and 89 in January.

One reason for the decline in attacks in April may be because of the death of Al Qaeda in Iraq’s northern commander. Abu Suhabi Ahmad al-Obeidi was killed by a joint U.S.-Iraqi operation on April 20 in Mosul. He was in charge of Al Qaeda’s operations in Ninewa, Tamim, Salahaddin, and parts of Diyala. That came amongst a series of devastating losses for the organization that included the death of its two leaders. A look at attacks over the next few months will reveal whether these were major setbacks for the group, or whether they will be able to recover.


Attack and Casualty Statistics for Mosul

Month	Attacks/Avg. Per Day	Deaths/Avg. Per Day	Wounded/Avg. Per Day
Sep. 09	72/2.40	65/2.16	60/2.00
Oct.	66/2.12	60/1.93	82/2.64
Nov.	55/1.83	37/1.23	71/2.36
Dec.	60/1.93	44/1.41	108/3.48
Jan. 10	59/1.90	38/1.22	89/2.87
Feb.	61/2.17	66/2.35	109/3.89
Mar.	67/2.16	27/0.87	125/4.03
Apr.	47/1.56	43/1.43	94/3.13

Breakdown Of Attacks/Incidents In Mosul - April 2010: 47
Defused Bomb: 1
Home Invasion: 1
Mortar Attack: 1
Grenade Attack: 2
Bombing: 3
Shoot-out/Arrest: 3
Body Found: 6
IED/Roadside Bomb: 10
Armed Attack: 20

SOURCES

AK News, “Qaeda military leader killed North of Baghdad,” 4/20/10

Aswat al-Iraq, “2 al-Qaeda leaders, cop killed in Mosul,” 4/23/10
- “2 civilians killed in Mosul,” 4/24/10
- “2 policemen wounded in blast in Mosul,” 4/22/10
- “2 unknown corpses in Ninewa,” 4/19/10
- “2nd civilian killed in Mosul in 24 hrs,” 4/7/10
- “3 mortars land near police HQ in Mosul,” 4/30/10
- “4 family members killed in Mosul,” 4/15/10
- “4 civilians, 2 soldiers wounded in Mosul,” 4/22/10
- “7 civilians wounded in blast in Mosul,” 4/19/10
- “24 killed, injured in Mosul suicide attack,” 4/12/10
- “Army kills, arrests 2 gunmen in Mosul,” 4/13/10
- “Bomb defused in eastern Mosul,” 4/30/10
- “Casualties from Mosul blast reach 40,” 4/4/10
- “Civilian body found in Mosul,” 4/7/10
- “Civilian gunned down in Mosul,” 4/5/10
- “Civilian gunned down in Mosul,” 4/26/10
- “Civilian killed, another wounded in Mosul,” 4/8/10
- “Civilian killed, cop wounded in Mosul,” 4/24/10
- “Civilian killed in western Mosul,” 4/15/10
- “Civilian wounded in grenade blast in Mosul,” 4/11/10
- “Cop killed, 3 wounded in Mosul,” 4/27/10
- “Cop wounded in Mosul shooting,” 4/11/10
- “Corpse of Shiite civilian found in Mosul,” 4/17/10
- “Decayed body found in pool in Mosul,” 4/3/10
- “Gunman killed, another wounded in IED blast in Mosul,” 4/8/10
- “Gunmen kill 2 cops in Mosul,” 4/9/10
- “Gunmen kill civilian in Mosul,” 4/14/10
- “IED defused near mosque in Mosul,” 4/8/10
- “IED kills officer in Mosul,” 4/30/10
- “Iraqi army soldier killed in Mosul,” 4/14/10
- “Iraqi soldier wounded in IED blast in Mosul,” 4/24/10
- “Iraqi soldier wounded in Mosul clashes,” 4/22/10
- “Police officer, civilian injured in Mosul,” 4/27/10
- “Soldier wounded in clashes with gunmen southeastern Mosul,” 4/20/10
- “Unknown body found in Mosul,” 4/5/10
- “Woman wounded in blast targeting Iraqi army in Mosul,” 4/2/10

BBC, “Iraqi al-Qaeda leaders ‘killed,’” 4/19/10

Issa, Sahar, “Round-up of Daily Violence in Iraq – Sunday 18 April 2010,” 4/18/10
- “Round-up of Daily Violence in Iraq – Thursday 15 April 2010,” 4/15/10

Reuters, “FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, April 6,” 4/6/10
- “FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, April 16,” 4/16/10

Williams, Timothy, “Wider Recount of Iraq Ballots Is Requested by Vote Leader,” New York Times, 4/20/10