Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
USA Today
November 30, 2007
Pg. 1
November toll could be lowest since May
By Jim Michaels, USA Today
BAGHDAD — The number of U.S. combat deaths in Iraq this month is headed toward the lowest monthly level since March 2006, reflecting a turnaround in U.S. efforts to establish security and defeat insurgents.
With one day left in November, 26 U.S. troops and a civilian Pentagon employee have died in combat. Nine more servicemembers died in non-combat-related incidents.
The November toll could mark the sixth consecutive month of declines in American deaths. It follows a downward trend in overall violence in Iraq.
Monthly U.S. combat deaths peaked this year at 120 in May.
"I believe we have the initiative," said Lt. Col. Kevin Petit, a battalion commander in Baghdad. "Now it is all about capitalizing on it."
Since January, U.S. forces have used a counterinsurgency strategy directed by Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, that moved troops off large bases and into outposts established in violent areas.
That shift led to an initial spike in U.S. casualties. U.S. forces encountered stiff resistance in some areas as they established outposts and challenged insurgents.
The drop in U.S. deaths appears due to the change in strategy and Iraqis rejecting al-Qaeda terrorists, said Dakota Wood, who served in the Marines and is a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.
Al-Qaeda's tactics of beheadings and other harsh treatment alienated many Iraqis, he said.
At the same time, U.S. troops have established better security for Iraqis, making siding with insurgents a less attractive option, Wood said.
Of the 27 U.S personnel killed in combat this month, 24 were killed by roadside bombs, or improvised explosive devices. Only three were killed by gunfire.
The high proportion of IED deaths stems from insurgents being less willing to shoot at U.S. troops. It's safer to plant a bomb, Wood said.
Civilian deaths in Iraq also have fallen, to under 1,000 in October from about 3,000 in December 2006, according to a U.S. military database.
November 30, 2007
Pg. 1
November toll could be lowest since May
By Jim Michaels, USA Today
BAGHDAD — The number of U.S. combat deaths in Iraq this month is headed toward the lowest monthly level since March 2006, reflecting a turnaround in U.S. efforts to establish security and defeat insurgents.
With one day left in November, 26 U.S. troops and a civilian Pentagon employee have died in combat. Nine more servicemembers died in non-combat-related incidents.
The November toll could mark the sixth consecutive month of declines in American deaths. It follows a downward trend in overall violence in Iraq.
Monthly U.S. combat deaths peaked this year at 120 in May.
"I believe we have the initiative," said Lt. Col. Kevin Petit, a battalion commander in Baghdad. "Now it is all about capitalizing on it."
Since January, U.S. forces have used a counterinsurgency strategy directed by Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, that moved troops off large bases and into outposts established in violent areas.
That shift led to an initial spike in U.S. casualties. U.S. forces encountered stiff resistance in some areas as they established outposts and challenged insurgents.
The drop in U.S. deaths appears due to the change in strategy and Iraqis rejecting al-Qaeda terrorists, said Dakota Wood, who served in the Marines and is a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.
Al-Qaeda's tactics of beheadings and other harsh treatment alienated many Iraqis, he said.
At the same time, U.S. troops have established better security for Iraqis, making siding with insurgents a less attractive option, Wood said.
Of the 27 U.S personnel killed in combat this month, 24 were killed by roadside bombs, or improvised explosive devices. Only three were killed by gunfire.
The high proportion of IED deaths stems from insurgents being less willing to shoot at U.S. troops. It's safer to plant a bomb, Wood said.
Civilian deaths in Iraq also have fallen, to under 1,000 in October from about 3,000 in December 2006, according to a U.S. military database.