Iraq+War

__ Iraq ____ War Factsheet Sept 2008(Bryan) __ Civilians Killed: Estimates range from 150,000 to over one million Americans Killed: over 4155, over 30,500 wounded Insurgents Killed (post-Saddam): 18,000-24,000. [|**Financial Cost** of the war] over $845 billion to the U.S., U.S. taxpayers will have paid $1.9trillion   [|Coalition Forces] ~300,000 at invasion~177,000 current. [|Iraqi Security Forces] 557,000 ( [|Army] : 180,000, [|Police] : 227,000, [|FPS] : 150,000) [|Contractors]  ~182,000 (118,000 Iraqi, 43,000 Other, 21,000 US)  [|Peshmerga] (armed Kurdish Police Forces in Northern Iraq) 50,000 invasion 270,000 current [|Sunni Insurgents] ~70,000  [|Mahdi Army]  ~60,000 [|[4]]   [|al Qaeda] /others 1,300+ [|[5]] [|Detainees] : 19,700 (U.S.-held) 24,200 (Iraqi-held) Refugees Created: 4.7 million refugees (~16% of the population of Iraq.) Abu Graib prisoner abuse: Received international media attention in April 2004 2006 UN described Iraq as being in a “civil war- like situation.” Military prosecutors charged 8 Marines with the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in [|Haditha] in November 2005, 10 of them women and children. Saddam Hussein was hanged on December 30, 2006 after being found guilty of crimes against humanity by an Iraqi court, January 10, 2007 Bush proposed 21,500 more troops for Iraq, a job programme for Iraqis, more reconstruction proposals, and $1.2 billion for these programmes. Tours of duty were increased and the [|exclusions of volunteers] with a history of criminal acts were relaxed.
 * Invasion Date ** : March 20, 2003
 * Good Guys: **
 * Bad Guys: **
 * The [|Iraq Study Group Report] ** December 6, 2006. "the situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating" and "U.S. forces seem to be caught in a mission that has no foreseeable end." The report's 79 recommendations include increasing diplomatic measures with [|Iran] and [|Syria] and intensifying efforts to train Iraqi troops.
 * Troop Surge ** :


 * OBAMA PLAN:** Withdraw about 1 brigade per month, all but residual troops out by 2010.
 * Humanitarian Crisis**: Over half of doctors have fled Iraq due to violence, 35% of Iraqi children orphans
 * Iraqi Opinion ** : March 7, 2007 survey 78% of the population opposes "the presence of Coalition forces in Iraq," that 69% believe the presence of U.S. forces is making things worse, and that 51% of the population consider attacks on coalition forces "acceptable", up from 17% in 2004 and 35% in 2006. However, only 35% want them to leave "now". 64% described their family's economic situation as being somewhat or very bad, up from 30% in 2005. 58% described reconstruction efforts in the area in which they live as either somewhat or very ineffective, and 9% described them as being totally nonexistent.