June 2014 has seen open fighting between the insurgents and
government forces in six of Iraq’s 18 provinces. There have also been continued
terrorist attacks in Baghdad. All together that has led to the highest casualty
figures since the civil war years. Iraq Body Count (IBC) had 1,934 fatalities. It counts
civilians, police and members of the Sahwa, but not soldiers. Iraq’s Defense,
Interior, and Health Ministries reported 1,922 deaths. Those were the highest
amounts since August 2007 when IBC had 2,481 and Baghdad
had 2,138. 2,417
was the figure given in a U.N. press release. That did not include Anbar,
because the violence there has kept the United Nation out of the province. That
was the most since March 2008’s 2,011. Agence France Presse did not have its
numbers totaled yet by the end of June. Finally Musings On Iraq recorded 2,719.
The real ferocity of the current violence is better shown by the daily
averages. IBC and the Iraqi government both had 64 people killed in Iraq per
day in June. That was followed by the U.N.’s 80 per day, and Musings On Iraq’s
90. In comparison, IBC, Baghdad and the United Nations only had 30-33 deaths
per day in April, while Musings On Iraq had 47 showing how casualties have
doubled during the current insurgent offensive.
Even these new annual highs only capture part of the picture
for the month. For one, the Iraqi government has stopped mentioning its losses
during the fighting. Everyday it reports on firefights with insurgents, but it
says nothing about its casualties. With Baghdad rushing in new recruits with
only a few days of training it’s likely they are suffering high losses, but
nothing can be confirmed due to the media blackout on the topic. Secondly, the
violence has kept journalists away from many areas so civilian casualties are
obviously being missed as well. Reporting on Iraqi deaths is never complete due
to the situation on the ground in the country. Now with fierce battles across
central Iraq the ability to cover all of the dead and wounded has become even
more difficult, but at the same time they are one of the only hard numbers that
can be used to track the current security crisis.
Deaths In Iraq 2003-2013
Month/Year
|
Iraq Body
Count
|
Avg.
Daily Deaths
|
Iraqi
Ministries
|
Avg.
Daily Deaths
|
United
Nations
|
Avg.
Daily Deaths
|
Agence
France Presse
|
Avg.
Daily Deaths
|
Musings
On Iraq
|
Avg.
Daily Deaths
|
2003
|
4,675
|
19.0
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2004
|
11,608
|
31.8l
|
11,313
|
30.99
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2005
|
16,186
|
44.2
|
15,817
|
43.3
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2006
|
29,144
|
79.8
|
32,622
|
89.3
|
34,452
|
94.3
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2007
|
25,519
|
69.9
|
19,155
|
52.4
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2008
|
9,839
|
26.9
|
9,046
|
24.7
|
11,536
|
31.6
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2009
|
5,132
|
14.0
|
3,682
|
10.0
|
4,611
|
12.6
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2010
|
4,109
|
11.2
|
3,949
|
10.8
|
4,855
|
13.3
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2011
|
4,147
|
11.3
|
2,781
|
7.6
|
4,150
|
11.3
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
2012
|
4,573
|
12.5
|
2,174
|
5.9
|
3,878
|
10.6
|
1,531
(7 mo.)
|
7.1
|
-
|
-
|
Jan. 2013
|
357
|
11.5
|
177
|
5.7
|
319
|
10.2
|
246
|
7.9
|
-
|
-
|
Feb.
|
360
|
12.7
|
136
|
4.8
|
418
|
14.9
|
220
|
7.8
|
-
|
-
|
Mar.
|
403
|
13.0
|
163
|
5.2
|
456
|
14.7
|
271
|
8.7
|
-
|
-
|
Apr.
|
545
|
18.1
|
208
|
6.9
|
712
|
23.7
|
461
|
15.3
|
-
|
-
|
May
|
888
|
28.6
|
681
|
21.9
|
1,045
|
33.7
|
614
|
19.8
|
-
|
-
|
Jun.
|
659
|
21.9
|
240
|
8.0
|
761
|
25.3
|
452
|
15.0
|
-
|
-
|
Jul.
|
1,145
|
36.9
|
989
|
31.9
|
1,057
|
34.0
|
875
|
28.2
|
-
|
-
|
Aug.
|
1,012
|
32.6
|
365
|
11.7
|
804
|
25.9
|
693
|
22.3
|
-
|
-
|
Sep.
|
1,221
|
40.7
|
971
|
32.3
|
979
|
32.6
|
880
|
29.3
|
-
|
-
|
Oct.
|
1,095
|
35.3
|
964
|
31.0
|
979
|
31.5
|
743
|
23.9
|
-
|
-
|
Nov.
|
903
|
30.1
|
948/
1,121
|
31.6/
37.3
|
659
|
21.9
|
693
|
23.1
|
-
|
-
|
Dec.
|
983
|
31.7
|
1,001
|
32.2
|
759
|
24.4
|
668
|
21.5
|
-
|
-
|
2013 Totals
|
9,571
|
25.9
|
6,843/
7,016
|
18.7/
19.2
|
8,948
|
24.5
|
6,818
|
18.6
|
-
|
-
|
Jan. 2014
|
1,076
|
34.7
|
1,013
|
32.6
|
733*
|
23.6
|
991
|
31.9
|
1,483
|
47.8
|
Feb.
|
930
|
33.2
|
790
|
28.2
|
703*
|
25.1
|
747
|
26.6
|
1,274
|
45.5
|
Mar.
|
1,009
|
32.5
|
1,004
|
32.3
|
748
|
24.1
|
512
|
16.5
|
1,606
|
51.8
|
Apr.
|
1,013
|
33.7
|
1,009
|
33.6
|
885
|
29.5
|
796
|
26.5
|
1,456
|
48.5
|
May
|
1,027
|
33.1
|
938
|
30.2
|
994
|
32.0
|
1,075
|
34.6
|
1,468
|
47.5
|
Jun.
|
1,934
|
64.4
|
1,922
|
64.0
|
2,417*
|
80.5
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
2,719
|
90.6
|
2014
Totals
|
6,989
|
38.6
|
6,676
|
36.8
|
6,480
|
35.8
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
9,995
|
55.2
|
* Figures
do not include Anbar
SOURCES
Agence France Presse, “Iraq says
death toll in June highest since May 2007,” 6/30/14
Glanz, James, “Civilian Death Toll Falls in Baghdad but
Rises Across Iraq,” New York Times, 9/2/07
Iraq Body Count
Nickolay Mladenov, “Iraq
Casualties Increase Dramatically in June,” 7/1/14
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