A grim U.S. military milestone is reached amid a resurgence of fighting with insurgents; Rumsfeld says coalition will not be deterred

September 8, 2004

BY JOHN RILEY
STAFF WRITER

The official U.S. military death toll in Operation Iraqi Freedom surpassed 1,000 yesterday, making it the 10th armed conflict in the nation's history to take that many lives.

No names were released to identify the soldier or the hometown marked by the sad milestone, but Pentagon spokesmen acknowledged it had been reached on a day when a spike in fighting with insurgents in the Baghdad area took at least seven U.S. lives.


The total, according to a recent Associated Press analysis of military deaths in the 18 months since the U.S. invaded Iraq, includes soldiers from every state except Alaska. More than 500 children have been left without fathers or mothers by the deaths. The youngest fatality was 18, the oldest 59, and more than half were not yet 30.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, in a midday news conference, downplayed the importance of the 1,000 benchmark. He said deaths in fighting since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, including both in Iraq and Afghanistan, passed 1,000 long ago, and said rising body counts would not alter U.S. policy.

Those who believe otherwise have "underestimated our country, our coalition," Rumsfeld said. "They have failed to understand the character of our people. And they certainly misread our commander in chief."

Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic presidential nominee, called the thousandth death a "tragic milestone" and said it highlighted the urgency of ending the conflict.

"Our nation honors their service and joins with their families and loved ones in mourning their loss," Kerry said in a statement. "We must never forget the price they have paid, and we must meet our sacred obligation to all our troops to do all we can to make the right decisions in Iraq so that we can bring them home as soon as possible."

Numbers released by the Pentagon yesterday morning indicated 990 U.S. deaths had been reported as of Monday night.

That total included 138 killed during combat operations in March and April of 2003; the rest have occurred during "post-combat" operations as troops have struggled with a multifaceted insurgency.

The tally includes three civilians attached to the Army and Air Force. Of the total, 246 were killed in nonhostile events, including accidents and suicides. It includes fatalities among troops assigned to Operation Iraqi Freedom outside Iraq, such as in the United States and Germany.

A Pentagon spokesman later confirmed that additional deaths reported during the subsequent 24 hours put the total over 1,000, including two U.S. soldiers killed in fighting in the Shia slum of Sadr City yesterday and others struck Monday in a suicide attack near Fallujah.

Almost half a million American soldiers on both sides were killed during the Civil War, and more than 405,000 U.S. service members were killed during World War II. During the Vietnam War, more than 58,000 troops died during nearly nine years of U.S. involvement. In the Persian Gulf War, more than 300 died.



Who they were

As of yesterday, 1,003 U.S. personnel have died since the Iraq war began in March 2003. Here's a breakdown of casualties.

Where they died

Casualty counts at the deadliest places

Baghdad 216
Fallujah 76
Mosul 55
Ramadi 37
Nasiriyah 35
Balad 31
Samarra 29
Tikrit 21
Najaf 17

TOTAL COMBAT DEATHS 757

The most common reported causes:

287 Gunfire/sniper/ ther enemy engagement
250 Bombing/ improvised explosives Casualties include combat and non-combat deaths.
117 Rocket-propelled grenade/mortar
61 Helicopter downing

TOTAL NON-COMBAT DEATHS 246

The most common reported causes:

92 Vehicle accident
45 Weapon discharge
29 Heatstroke/ illness
11 Ordnance accident

COMPARING RECENT WARS

Casualties include combat and non-combat deahts.

Conflict Duration Total casualties Avg. deaths per day

Revolutionary War 1775-83 4,435 1.4
Civil War 1861-65 498,332 346
World War I 1917-18 116,516 200
World War II 1941-45 405,399 297
Korean War 1950-53 36,574 32
Vietnam War 1964-75 58,209 15
Persian Gulf War 1991 382 8.7
Afghanistan 2001- 135 0.1
Current Iraq conflict 2003- 1,003 1.9

BRANCH OF SERVICE

Casualties include civilian contractos and reservists.

Army 622
Marines 241
Natioanl Guard* 107
Navy 20
Air Force 12
Coast Guard 1

* Air and Army National Guard

CASUALTIES BY NATION

United States 1,003
Italy 18
Spain 11
Poland 10
Other coalition allies 21

RESEARCHED BY DOROTHY LEVIN, LAURA MANN AND ANDREW WONG