MILITARY: Monthly troop deaths lowest since Iraq invasion
Eight Pendleton Marines killed in first seven months of this year
By MARK WALKER - Staff Writer | ∞
NCT Though the region has lost nearly 1,000 Marines since the invasion of Iraq, the sounds of taps are being heard far less often across Southern California.
Through the first seven months of this year, eight Camp Pendleton-based Marines have died in Iraq, the lowest total for comparable periods since the war began in March 2003.
For North County military families, the declining death toll means fewer somber memorials, fewer roadside bouquets and fewer heartfelt notes of grief and remembrance.
Overall, 11 U.S. troops from all branches of the military died in Iraq this month, the lowest monthly figure since the war began, according to statistics kept by icasualties.org.
The declining violence in Iraq being reported by the military also is reflected at San Diego's Miramar Marine Corps Air Station, which hasn't lost a single troop in Iraq this year.
The reduction in troop deaths for the region is a welcome respite from the first five years of the war. Of the 994 Marines who have perished, nearly 47 percent, or 465, came from Camp Pendleton, Miramar or the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms in the Mojave Desert.
The declining casualty reports are welcomed by groups such as American Combat Veterans of War, a nonprofit organization that works with troops on issues of stress and problems encountered in obtaining benefits. Group members also participate in memorial services for local troops.
"We're happy that fewer are dying, but unfortunately, I think we're going to see those numbers continue to rise in Afghanistan," said Bill Rider, the group's president.
The reported decrease in violence across Iraq, coupled with reports of growing political stability there, are prompting Marine Corps leaders and enlisted men to question how much longer they need to be in the country.
Those questions come as commanders in Afghanistan have asked for up to 10,000 more troops to quell rising violence in that country.
About 11,000 locally based Marines and sailors are serving in Iraq this year, including two regimental combat teams based at Camp Pendleton and several elements of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing based at Miramar. Most of those Marines and sailors are scheduled to be home by year's end.
At sea now are an additional 1,200-plus Marines and sailors from Camp Pendleton's 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. While some have speculated that that force may be ordered to Afghanistan, Pentagon spokesman Jeff Morrell told reporters this week that he doubted that would occur.
The local troops serve primarily in Anbar province, a sprawling region the size of North Carolina that was once considered an insurgent stronghold that would never be tamed. That began to change in late 2006 when Sunni tribal sheiks in the province of about 1.2 million people began to turn away from the insurgency and al-Qaida foreign fighters.
More killings in U.S. cities
A high-level officer in Iraq said this month that while parts of Anbar remain dangerous, the Iraqi national army and security forces are taking primary responsibility for security in the region, albeit with the knowledge that Marines are ready to back them up.
"If you look at what has been happening, there's no question the violence is down," said the officer who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly. "There are more killings on a monthly basis now in a lot of large American cities than we are seeing here."
Sgt. Maj. Carlton Kent, the top enlisted man in the Marine Corps, echoed the growing sense of calm in Anbar, telling the weekly Marine Corps Times newspaper that many of the Marines there are "bored."
"If you look at Iraq, it's pretty stable, especially out in western Iraq," Kent is quoted as telling the newspaper in its edition dated Aug. 4. "It's really, really stable out there. If you talk to the average Marine over in Al Anbar, they are bored."
Kent also said that Marine infantry battalions "go over now and they don't fire their weapon ---- not one ---- in anger."
Marine losses
Since Jan. 1, 219 American service members have died in Iraq. That compares with 254 for the first seven months of 2003, 466 between Jan. 1 and July 31 in 2004. In 2005, the death toll was 384 for the comparable period and 347 in 2006.
Last year, 660 U.S. troops were killed between January and July. By the end of December, 902 troop fatalities had been recorded, making it the most lethal year of the war.
Of the 11 U.S. fatalities in July, two were Army soldiers kidnapped last year but whose remains went undiscovered until this month.
Two of the nine troops who died this month were Marines, including one based at Camp Pendleton, Lance Cpl. Jeffery Stevenson. He was killed in what the Pentagon described only as a nonhostile incident that remains under investigation.
The 994 Marines who have died represent nearly one-quarter of the overall U.S. fatality count of 4,125. The loss includes 864 active-duty Marines and 130 reservists, according to icasualties.org.
Of the 994, 336 were active-duty Marines based at Camp Pendleton and 14 were based at Miramar Marine Corps Air Station. Four of the reservists to die were based at Camp Pendleton.
Another 111 Marines based at the Marine Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms have been killed in Iraq, according to the icasualty.org figures.
The reductions in violence haven't changed anything as far as the group Iraq Veterans Against the War is concerned. It continues to call for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops.
"The reduction doesn't mean much about the reasons why we're there," said Del Mar's Kenyon Ralph, a former Marine sergeant who had tours of duty in Iraq in 2003 and 2004 and heads the 30-member San Diego chapter of the group. "We're still occupying Iraq and the war is illegal and it isn't good for the American people or the Iraqis."
Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or mlwalker@nctimes.com.
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Old Timer wrote on Jul 30, 2008 10:38 PM:For all those that gave all they had or were mortally wounded for their country and fellow citizens, I honor you. My hope is that your fellow citizens will not forget and be there in the future when you or your family might need the country to sacrifice for them. As a Viet Nam veteran I will never forget your sacrifice. To a Marine or Soldier, the war is not about politics, it is about honor and doing your duty, and that is why your service is the greatest sacrifice of all.
anotherview wrote on Jul 30, 2008 10:56 PM:We all welcome a decline in Marines who have sacrificed for their country. At the same time, let us grasp clearly that no war now exists in Iraq. The American war effort in Iraq ended with the toppling of Saddam Hussein. Since then, a civil war has erupted in Iraq, with Iraqis killing Iraqis in a power struggle. The American occupying army sits in the middle of this civil war, while supporting the weak Iraqi central government. As a result, this army has become a target of the warring factions in their battle against the Iraqi government. Calling this deadly civil war a war both misleads and misinforms the reading public. After all, no external enemy attacks Iraq, and Iraq does not defend itself against an external enemy. Instead, a civil war, an internal conflict, rages in Iraq, with no end in sight. The futile American military involvement in Iraq costs America $12 billion per month. Further, incorrectly identifying the Iraqi civil war as a war suggests a valid justification for both the continuing American involvement there and the enormous expense of this effort. By now, all reasonable people know that the American invasion of Iraq rested on fictional grounds. Yet, the Bush II administration persists in keeping an American occupying army in that country, using the presence there of a remnant of the al Qaeda terrorist group. The time has come for journalists to act responsibly by calling the present conflict in Iraq a civil war. Responsible leadership must do the same. Bush II once said he would never put American troops in the middle of a civil war, but he has done so. If the citizenry begins saying the words “civil war” to describe the present conflict in Iraq, then maybe others will follow. No American victory or success will occur in Iraq, in the sense of winning a war there, simply because no war exists to win. Bush II also justifies the American occupying army in Iraq by asserting it will help to ensure establishment of a democratic government for that nation. To date, however, no news report has said even a single Iraqi imam has adopted the ideology of democracy. Iraq has no history of democracy. Fundamentally, Iraq functions as an Islamic state, and will continue to do so, just as it has done for 1300 years. America cannot push democracy on that Muslim nation. Besides, the fight against global Islamic terrorism must happen everywhere an Islamic terrorist lurks, not just in one or two nations. Hence, a sensible strategy in this fight calls for America to exit Iraq as soon as practical, and then to deploy its forces elsewhere, to target Islamic terrorists for termination, before they harm more innocents. This strategy will bring the best results.
Bill wrote on Jul 31, 2008 3:41 AM:The sweet sound of liberals being wrong.
Now if only they would admit it.
Bill wrote on Jul 31, 2008 3:45 AM:How is the war illegal?
Congress authorized it.
Thats legal.
That last part was funny.
Even the liberal former Marines cant admit they were wrong.
How embarrasing.
How John Kerry like.
Hank wrote on Jul 31, 2008 7:53 AM:If liberals are sad today, does that mean that they rejoice at the news of a killed service member?
Old Timer wrote on Jul 31, 2008 9:41 AM:The war is not about Liberals or Conservatives or those that are Moderate, it is about our National Policy being correct or wrong. The debate about being correct or wrong is merited, but all this silly political name calling with accusations is wrong. If you have true facts, back up your claim, and if all you have is name calling then go do some reading. I think our troops deserve something better than all this silliness.
Bogie wrote on Jul 31, 2008 10:38 AM:Old Timer,
Thanks you very much for your thoughts. They are concise and to a very good point. I couldn't agree with you more.
another old timer
American Me wrote on Jul 31, 2008 2:24 PM:I agree with old timer. Thanks to all who have served honorably. I have friends who are Iraqi born, and they and their families back home are also gratefull that iraq has been liberated.
To Bill wrote on Jul 31, 2008 2:41 PM:The deaths in Afghanistan are higher than ever before. The amount of soldiers dying each month has stayed relatively the same. I am not okay with trading less soldiers dying in Iraq for more in Afghanistan.
The truth wrote on Jul 31, 2008 5:21 PM:No matter what resources you quote your facts from, this war is an illegal war from the legal aspect and no war is ever "right". I am also a Marine who volunteered for the first Desert Storm and came up through the ranks from private to captain. I believe in the Marine Corps but that doesn't mean I support this war. Regardless of what pro-war conservatives think, the United States will eventually exit Iraq and then what? Truth of the matter is someone worse than Saddam Hussein who possesses an alliance with Iran will step in making the whole situation go from bad to worse. The fighting has not stopped, it's just a respite in this so called "war". We forget that Iraq has been around a lot longer than we have and that they have a culture which we are totally oblivious to. This is how they do things in Iraq and this way of life is how they have managed to endure this war and survive throughout the years.
Support wrote on Jul 31, 2008 8:22 PM:OUR TROOPS!!!!!
Sailor Joe wrote on Jul 31, 2008 9:16 PM:The truth
[-] wrote on Jul 31, 2008 5:21 PM:No matter what resources you quote your
----Captain You said it correctly and with facts people ignore or swallow the cool aide from the Hannitys-and Rushes -radio jockeys who are paid millions to tell you what to think. They are paid stooges for someone. But, you laid out the facts as I know them. Colin Powell said you invade Iraq-you buy it! And it is expensive-enough to bankrupt this country!
What a joke when a politician running for President says we will stay 100 years to WIN! Win What?
What government-country- is going to lay down there arms and sign a peace treaty?
Oli wrote on Sep 28, 2008 4:55 PM:I find it deeply immoral how the politicians who authorized this war, which by the way violates international law, can use the decline in violence as a way to further their own private agenda. Furthermore, I am tired of hearing people praise the president for "liberating" Iraq, when the truth is that Iraq remains an occupied nation, torn of its sovereignty. What the mainstream media so reluctantly refuses to recognize is that the decline in violence is in large part, due to a cease-fire agreement between the fighting factions of the civil war, which by the way was provoked by our occupation. The agreement is not directed against coalition troops but instead is aimed at drawing on more violence against occupational forces. The major insurgency factions have in large part reconciled to drive out the occupation, not to cooperate with the U.S. as our media would have us believe. It is interesting to note that the decline in deaths of US service members in Iraq is accompanied with a sharp increase in deaths in Afghanistan, increased tensions with Pakistan and a financial turmoil not seen since 1929. The establishment is manipulating the facts to distract us from the grim reality that weakens our nation to the point of collapse. Morality is a priority when it comes to dealing with issues as serious as these. No one is downplaying the importance of defending our nation or supporting those who wear the uniform, but we must never forget the obligations we have to defend the constitution in its entirety, against enemies foreign AND domestic. I express my opinion not as a liberal or a conservative, I express my opinion only as a human being something we must think of ourselves as regardless of the ideas that threaten to divide us.
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