October 4, 2011

US military occupation forces in Iraq and Afganistan and attacking forces in Libya under Commander-in-Chief Obama suffered 116 combat casualties in the week ending October 4, as the official casualty total rose to 110,135.

The total includes 79,265 casualties since the US invaded Iraq in March, 2003 (Operations “Iraqi Freedom” and “New Dawn”), and 30,870 since the US invaded Afganistan in November, 2001 (Operation “Eduring Freedom”)and none reported since it attacked Libya (Operation “Odessy Dawn”) in March, 2011.

IRAQ THEATER: US forces suffered five combat casualties in the week ending Oct. 4, as the total rose to 79,265. That includes 35,725 dead and wounded from what the Pentagon classifies as “hostile” causes and 43,540 dead and medically evacuated (as of Oct. 3) from “non-hostile” causes.

AFGANISTAN THEATER: US forces suffered 111 combat casualties in the week ending Oct. 4 as the total rose to 30,870. The total includes 15,761 dead and wounded from “hostile” causes and 15,109 dead and medically evacuated (as of Oct 3) from “non-hostile” causes.

LIBYA THEATER:Two air force officers in a downed F-15E were rescued with minor injuries which were not listed as casualties, but several Libyans were wounded by US fire in their rescue. Reports indicate US aircraft no longer fly combat missions over Libya, but focus on refeuling, survaillance and offshore missile launches.

US media divert attention from the actual cost in American life and limb by only reporting regularily the total killed (6,269 – 4,481 in Iraq,1,788 in Afghanistan) but rarely mentioning those wounded in action (46,434–32,200 in Iraq, 14,342 in Afghanistan). They ignore the 57,324 (42,584 in Iraq,14,740 in AfPak as of Oct 3) military casualties injured and ill seriously enough to be medivaced out of theater, even though the 6,269 total dead include 1,325 (956 in Iraq, 369 in Afghanistan) who died from those same “non hostile” causes, including 299 suicides (as of Oct 3) and at least 18 in Iraq from faulty KBR electrical work.

WIA are usually updated on Tuesday at defenselink.mil/news/casualty.pdf

Non combat casualties are usually reported monthly at siadapp.dmdc.osd.mil/personnel/CASUALTY/castop.htm

The above report is published by Michael Munk via his email list.