Over 50 US deaths and 400+ wounded in Iraq this month

the situation is really spiraling out of control in iraq

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/15/world/worldspecial/15cnd-iraq.html

U.S. Death Toll in Iraq Hits 53 So Far This Month

Two marines were killed by insurgents in Anbar Province on Sunday, the American military command said, and three American soldiers died a day earlier in a bombing in southern Baghdad, bringing the total number of American troop deaths in Iraq this month to at least 53, an extraordinarily high midmonth tally.

At the current rate of American deaths — more than 3.5 a day — October is on track to be the third deadliest month of the entire Iraq war for American forces, according to Iraq Coalition Casualty Count, an independent Web site that tracks war-related casualties.

In a series of attacks on Sunday against Iraqi civilian and government targets in the northern city of Kirkuk, seven bombs, including three suicide car bombs, exploded within a few hours of each other, killing at least 17 people and wounding at least 73, according to police officials.

The rising American military death toll, which comes in spite of improvements in armor and other defenses, follows a recent decision by the American military to raise the profile of American troops in Baghdad and increase their combat operations.

Beginning last year, American commanders reduced the number of American patrols and pushed Iraqi forces to take over more responsibility for securing the capital.

But in late July, amid escalating sectarian violence that threatened to engulf the city and shove the country into full-scale civil war, American commanders decided to reverse their strategy, shift thousands of American troops to Baghdad from elsewhere in the country and abandon a plan to reduce troop strength significantly by the end of the year

[click link for the entire 2 page article]

 

either we have to put more troops in iraq now or pull them all out which would be a disaster for the iraqis.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1925170,00.html

Sharp rise in US death rate in Iraq

The US military confirmed today that nine troops had been killed in fighting and bombings in Iraq yesterday, raising this month's death toll for American forces to 67.

If the rate of US fatalities continues at the same level throughout this month, it will make October the deadliest for coalition forces since January 2005, when 107 US troops died.

In more violence today, a roadside bomb killed a provincial police intelligence chief in southern Iraq and four of his bodyguards, police said.