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~May God Comfort Those Who Mourn~
Posted on 06/15/2006 8:01:12 AM PDT by kellynla
WASHINGTON – The number of U.S. military deaths in the Iraq war has reached 2,500, the Pentagon said Thursday, more than three years into a conflict that finds U.S. and allied foreign forces locked in a struggle with a resilient insurgency. In addition, the Pentagon said 18,490 U.S. troops have been wounded in the war, which began in March 2003 with a U.S.-led invasion to topple President Saddam Hussein.
Tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed. “It's important to remember that there is a mission, and there is a greater good which sometimes necessitates tremendous sacrifice,” said Army Brig. Gen. Carter Ham, deputy director for regional operations for the military's Joint Staff who formerly commanded U.S. forces in northern Iraq.
“Rather than focus on an aggregate number, I think it's more important for us to remember that there are individuals in that aggregate number ... to whom we should be very, very grateful, and to their families,” Ham said.
On an average day in the war, about two U.S. troops are killed. In the average month, about 64 U.S. troops are killed.
Defense analysts noted that U.S. deaths in Iraq, while significant, are far fewer than in other protracted U.S. wars since World War Two. In the Vietnam War, 58,000 U.S. troops died. In the Korean War, 54,000 died.
Roadside bombs, known by the military as improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, are the biggest cause of U.S. casualties. Ham said despite good progress in detecting roadside bombs and the insurgents responsible for making and planting them, the overall numbers of these attacks have increased over the past several months.
(Excerpt) Read more at signonsandiego.com ...
May they rest in peace.
Semper Fi, Kelly
The MSM is pissed this didn't happen when the President was in Iraq.
Not to minimize these precious losses, but the DOD stats show over 9000 of the wounded were returned to duty within 72 hours.
"Resillient insurgency" my aunt Annie's fanny it's humankind in the last throes of being headed for the lake of fire, even so come quickly, the eternal horror awaiting them!
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May God bless them and keep them, and give comfort to their families. We will never forget what they've done to protect us and our freedom.
Yeah, that bugs me also. To the MSM, the bad guys are always "resilient" or "tenacious" or "unrelenting," and occasionally even "elite." But do they ever use adjectives like those to describe US troops? Never.
Never!
No doubt a certain Senator from Illinois is celebrating in his office right now.
Defense analysts noted that U.S. deaths in Iraq, while significant, are far fewer than in other protracted U.S. wars since World War Two. In the Vietnam War, 58,000 U.S. troops died. In the Korean War, 54,000 died.
They didn't mention WWII figures, but in just a little over one month, during the Battle of the Bulge, 81,000 American casualties, including 23,554 captured and 19,000 killed.
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