Deadliest Month in 5 Years: Bloodshed Soars in War-Ravaged Iraq
Society decimated by decade of war faces mounting civilian casualties as bombings and shootings spike in July
More than 1,000 Iraqis--most of them civilians--were killed by political and sectarian violence in Iraq during July, marking the deadliest month in this country since 2008, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq announced on Thursday.
The spike in violence follows the so-called US withdrawal after a decade of war and occupation in Iraq--marked by staggering civilian death rates, high-profile atrocities, and decimation of social infrastructure.
1,057 Iraqis were killed and 2,326 injured by deadly waves of bombings and shootings, with Baghdad the hardest hit, according to the UNAMI report.
The five year spike follows an increasingly deadly year, as Sunni and Shi'ite sectarian and political conflict escalates.
"The impact of violence on civilians remains disturbingly high, with at least 4,137 civilians killed and 9,865 injured since the beginning of 2013," U.N. envoy for Iraq George Busztin said Thursday.
_____________________
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
More than 1,000 Iraqis--most of them civilians--were killed by political and sectarian violence in Iraq during July, marking the deadliest month in this country since 2008, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq announced on Thursday.
The spike in violence follows the so-called US withdrawal after a decade of war and occupation in Iraq--marked by staggering civilian death rates, high-profile atrocities, and decimation of social infrastructure.
1,057 Iraqis were killed and 2,326 injured by deadly waves of bombings and shootings, with Baghdad the hardest hit, according to the UNAMI report.
The five year spike follows an increasingly deadly year, as Sunni and Shi'ite sectarian and political conflict escalates.
"The impact of violence on civilians remains disturbingly high, with at least 4,137 civilians killed and 9,865 injured since the beginning of 2013," U.N. envoy for Iraq George Busztin said Thursday.
_____________________
More than 1,000 Iraqis--most of them civilians--were killed by political and sectarian violence in Iraq during July, marking the deadliest month in this country since 2008, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq announced on Thursday.
The spike in violence follows the so-called US withdrawal after a decade of war and occupation in Iraq--marked by staggering civilian death rates, high-profile atrocities, and decimation of social infrastructure.
1,057 Iraqis were killed and 2,326 injured by deadly waves of bombings and shootings, with Baghdad the hardest hit, according to the UNAMI report.
The five year spike follows an increasingly deadly year, as Sunni and Shi'ite sectarian and political conflict escalates.
"The impact of violence on civilians remains disturbingly high, with at least 4,137 civilians killed and 9,865 injured since the beginning of 2013," U.N. envoy for Iraq George Busztin said Thursday.
_____________________