US casualty rate in Iraq rises sharply

Thirteen US soldiers were killed in Baghdad between Oct. 2 and 4, the US military reported, registering the highest three-day death toll for US forces in the capital since the start of the war. The losses demonstrate a recent spike in violent attacks against US forces that claimed the lives of at least 24 soldiers and marines in Iraq since Sept. 30, the military said. The number of planted bombs is "at an all-time high," said Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell, a military spokesman. "This has been a hard week for US forces," Caldwell said. "Unfortunately, as expected, attacks have steadily increased in Baghdad during these past weeks." Seventy-four soldiers and marines were killed in Iraq in September, representing the highest monthly toll since April, when 76 died, according to the Iraq Coalition Casualty Count. Army Maj. Gen. James D. Thurman, commander of the Multinational Division in Baghdad, said two weeks ago that attacks against US-led occupation forces in Baghdad had reached an average of 42 a day–with about six causing casualties or equipment damage–up from 36 or 38 attacks. The number of US troops being wounded in Iraq is now at its highest level for two years as US forces are confronted by increasing sectarian violence and a continuing insurgency. Figures released by the Pentagon show that 776 soldiers were wounded in action in Iraq last month. The September figure represents the fourth largest casualty rate since the US and UK invasion in the spring of 2003 and the largest since November 2004 when US forces were involved in a major offensive to clear the city of Falluja. Some experts believe the number of wounded provides a better insight to the nature of the war in Iraq than the figure of over 2,700 killed because–in relation to previous wars–many more wounded troops survive. The ratio of wounded to killed is eight to one, compared with three to one during the Vietnam War. Anthony Cordesman, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the Washington Post: "These days wounded are a much better measure of the intensity of the operations than killed." Nearly 300 were wounded in the first week of October alone.