Iraqi civilian deaths at record high

Over 6,500 civilians were killed in Iraq in the past two months, according to a UN report released on Sept. 20–a figure far greater than initial estimates had suggested. Across the country, the report found 3,590 civilians were killed in July–the highest monthly total on record–and 3,009 more were killed in August. There were 4,309 Iraqi civilians reported wounded in August, a 14 percent increase from July. With known Iraqi deaths running at more than 100 a day resulting from sectarian murders, insurgent attacks and fatalities inflicted by the multinational forces, the UN said its total was likely to be "on the low side" because of the difficulties of collecting accurate figures. In particular, it said that no deaths were reported from the violent region covering Ramadi and Falluja. Casualties had climbed in other regions, notably in Diyala and Mosul. And the report said that while the number of killings decreased at the beginning of August, "further increases were evident towards the end of the month in Baghdad and other governorates." The report, issued by the human rights office of the UN assistance mission in Iraq (UNAMI), states that the country's government, set up in 2006, is "facing a generalized breakdown of law and order which presents a serious challenge to the institutions of Iraq." The UNAMI report said that 5,106 people in Baghdad alone died violent deaths during July and August, a number far higher than reports that have relied on figures from the city's morgue. As Baghdad has become the main stage for intensified sectarian fighting, the counting of the dead has become a contentious issue. Some US officials say figures released by the Baghdad morgue are inflated. The United Nations report includes the morgue's figures of 1,855 killed in July and 1,536 killed in August. But it also counts bodies received at other hospitals in the city. The US military had initially claimed a dramatic drop in the Iraqi death toll for August, but the estimate was revised sharply upwards after it revealed that it had inexplicably left out figures for people killed by bombs, mortars, rockets and other mass attacks. Torture remains widespread, not only by death squads but also in official detention centers, according to the UNAMI report. The report said some detainees showed signs of beating "using electrical cables, wounds in different parts of their bodies, including in the head and genitals, broken bones of legs and hands, electric and cigarette burns." Bodies found in Baghdad, the report added, often show signs of torture that include "acid-induced injuries and burns caused by chemical substances, missing skin, broken bones, missing eyes, missing teeth and wounds caused by power drills or nails." Iraqi authorities confirmed that many bodies that were found in the past six months bore signs of serious torture. "Unfortunately, the information released by UNAMI in its report is true and reflects the reality of Iraq today. Most of the bodies found were tortured and were sometimes even impossible to recognize," said Dr. Fa'aq Amin, director of the Institute for Forensic Medicine at the Ministry of Health. The UNAMI report also noted the rise in "honor killings" of women. "In their fight against generalized violence, central, regional and local authorities should provide greater protection to women for crimes committed within the family, including all types of violence against women and girls on the grounds of honor," the report said. The increasing incidence of discovery of the bodies of women and teenage girls, shot in the chest rather than in the head, has been attributed to the establishment by both extremist Sunnis and Shias of secretive sharia committees, which locals say carry out killings. The report also said that about 300,000 people had been displaced in Iraq since the bombing of a shrine in Samarra in February. More than 20,600 Iraqi civilians have died in attacks since January, according to UNAMI. The UN report raises serious questions about the ability of US and Iraqi forces to bring peace to Baghdad, where the bulk of the violent deaths occur. Despite a massive deployment of US forces on the city's streets, there has been a recent surge in the number of bodies that have been found tortured and bound. US commanders acknowledge that the overall level of violence in the city has risen even if it has fallen in areas they target. The report was released as US military officials in Baghdad described a sharp rise in executions in the capital and said that insurgents appeared to have intensified efforts to kill US soldiers. Some Iraqi analysts trace the root of the violence to the beginning of the country's occupation in 2003. "Violence in Iraq has destroyed the integrity and structure of the country. Development and reconstruction has been delayed and, in addition, the human rights situation, which was the reason for the US invasion in Iraq, has worsened when compared to Saddam Hussein's regime," said Barak Ibrahim, a political analyst and professor at Mustansiryiah University. Ibrahim and other specialists at the university say that violence in Iraq will continue despite different reconciliation plans being proposed because insurgency and militia actions are a response to the US-led occupation. "If we go deep into the cause that prompted such violence we will find in the end that the presence, especially, of US troops in the country has generated revolt and loss of patience by fighters and only when [the occupation forces] leave the country can we start to speak about improvement in security issues," Ibrahim said.