BAGHDAD — Violent deaths of U.S. troops and Iraqi civilians appear to have fallen sharply in Iraq in October, according to the latest Associated Press tally.
The AP's figures mirror other reports that the levels of bloodshed are falling here. But the meaning of these statistics is disputed, and experts generally agree that the struggle for security and stability is far from over. The number of Iraqi civilians killed fell from at least 1,023 in September to at least 875 in October, according to the AP count.
That's the lowest monthly toll for civilian casualties in the past year and is down sharply from the 1,216 recorded in October 2006. The numbers are based on daily reports from police, hospital officials, morgue workers and verifiable witness accounts.
The count is considered a minimum based on AP reporting; the actual number is likely to be higher, as many killings go unreported.
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The drop in deaths among U.S. military personnel in Iraq was even more striking, according to AP's records — down from 65 in September to at least 36 in October. The October figure is by far the lowest in the last year and is sharply lower than the 106 deaths recorded in October 2006.
The relative period of calm — if that's what it is — came during the Muslim fast of Ramadan, a time when militants have in the past escalated their attacks on U.S. forces.
Max Boot, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and former editorial editor for The Wall Street Journal, said the apparent decline in deaths reflected the success of the buildup in Iraq of U.S. military personnel, who now number 170,000. They also have moved increasingly out of massive forward operating bases into violence-plagued areas.
But Anthony Cordesman, an expert on the Middle East and military affairs with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the numbers he's seen so far mostly reflect a decline in the level of lethal violence against U.S. troops in Baghdad and Anbar province.
He said data collected by the Government Accountability Office don't justify the conclusion that the overall level of fighting has fallen off or that the number of civilian deaths is declining, because they don't paint a full picture of the conflict.
U.S. takes on Kurdish rebels
The United States acknowledged Wednesday that it has undertaken military moves against Kurdish rebels in Iraq after asserting for weeks that their strikes in Turkey were a diplomatic matter.
Pentagon officials are now starting to say publicly that America is flying manned spy planes over the border area, providing Turkey with more intelligence information, and standing orders are in effect for U.S. forces to capture rebels they find.
Only last Friday, the U.S. commander in northern Iraq, Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, said he planned to do "absolutely nothing" to counter Kurdish rebels operating from the region.
But Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, in comments that appeared aimed at allaying Turkish frustration over the matter, said Sunday that the U.S. military was playing a role in trying to defuse tensions. Petraeus would not elaborate.
Diplomats angry, frustrated
Several hundred U.S. diplomats vented anger and frustration Wednesday about the State Department's decision to force foreign-service officers to take jobs in Iraq, with some likening it to a "potential death sentence."
In a contentious hour-long town hall meeting, they peppered officials responsible for the order with often hostile complaints about the largest diplomatic call-up since Vietnam. Announced last week, it will require some diplomats — under threat of dismissal — to serve at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and in reconstruction teams in outlying provinces.
Many expressed serious concern about the ethics of sending diplomats against their will to serve in a war zone, where the embassy staff is largely confined to the protected "Green Zone" and safety outside the area is uncertain while a review of the department's use of private security contractors to protect its staff is under way.
"Incoming is coming in every day; rockets are hitting the Green Zone," said Jack Croddy, a senior foreign-service officer who once worked as a political adviser with NATO forces.
He and others confronted Foreign Service Director General Harry Thomas, who approved the move to "directed assignments" late last Friday to make up for a lack of volunteers willing to go to Iraq.
U.S. toll in Iraq
• Deaths: 3,837
• Wounded: 28,385
No identifications reported.
Source: Department of Defense as of Wednesday.
