A recent report by the Pentagon has provided a limited estimate of Iraqi civilian casualties. CNN took the figures provided in a graph titled “Average Daily Casualties” and extrapolated that 26,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed by insurgents since January 2004. The report further states that while 80% of insurgent attacks target occupying forces, 80% of the casualties in these attacks are Iraqi civilians.
However, the report’s tabulation of civilian casualties is incomplete in that it does not count Iraqi civilian casualties that result from coalition actions. Consequently, an event like yesterday’s air raid near Qaim, which killed an estimated 30 civilians, would not be counted in the total. Moreover, the report does not admit any responsibility for the insurgent attacks despite the rather obvious fact that if it was not for the United States invasion and occupation those 26,000 civilians never would have died.
The Pentagon has never provided an estimate of the total number of Iraqi civilians killed by US military actions although estimates range from 26,732 to 100,000.
Related posts:
