U.S. deaths in Iraq fell in October to their lowest monthly level of the war, matching the record low of 13 fatalities suffered in July. Iraqi deaths fell to their lowest monthly levels of the year. Eight of the 13 Americans died in combat, most of them in northern Iraq where al-Qaida and other Sunni insurgent groups remain active. The U.S. military suffered 25 deaths in September and 23 in August.
In Afghanistan, meanwhile, 15 U.S. military deaths were reported for October. The monthly toll in that combat theater had been in the 20s since June, when 28 Americans were killed – the worst one-month total since that war began in late 2001.
The sharp drop in American fatalities in Iraq reflects the overall security improvements across the country following the Sunni revolt against al-Qaida and the rout suffered by Shiite extremists in fighting last spring in Basra and Baghdad.
What caught my attention from this AP report was the line, “… the rout suffered by Shiite extremists in fighting last spring in Basra and Baghdad.” The last mention of the Shiite uprising that appeared on this site was headlined, ” Areas of Baghdad fall to Militias as Iraqi Army falters in Basra”(March 27). The article went on to say that Iraq was looking into the abyss. Obviously, this site is not a news service, but I think the juxtaposition of these two posts reflects something about how this war has been reported.