Experts Doubt Drop In Violence in Iraq
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The U.S. military's claim that violence has decreased sharply in Iraq in recent months has come under scrutiny from many experts within and outside the government, who contend that some of the underlying statistics are questionable and selectively ignore negative trends.
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Iraqi civilian deaths dropped to their lowest level since the start of the Baghdad security operation, government figures showed Sunday, suggesting signs of progress in tamping down violence in the capital.
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Combat fatalities could be as low as 23 for October, a level not seen since 2006. Iraqi losses also fall.
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BAGHDAD - The second-ranking US commander in Iraq said yesterday that violence was down in Baghdad following the seven-month security operation in Baghdad, but that too many civilians are still dying.
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Violence is down in the first weeks of a troop buildup, but the military's response has been guarded  -  with good reason
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BAGHDAD -- America's second-ranking diplomat in Iraq predicted progress by fall on bringing together Iraq's feuding factions as violence claimed more lives yesterday, including 14 people killed in a late-night car bombing near a Shi'ite shrine in the capital.
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Violence in Iraq could worsen after this weekend's elections because insurgents may exploit the uncertain period while polling results are certified and the government assembled, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Wednesday.
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Violence is high in Iraq, with scant political progress and mixed results on security, a Congressional report said on Tuesday, a day after President George W. Bush visited Anbar province and struck an upbeat tone.
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The commander of US forces in Iraq says violence has decreased, but the country still faces many problems.
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U.S. intelligence experts painted a gloomy picture of Iraq, saying in a report seen on Friday sectarian bloodshed had surpassed the threat from al Qaeda and warning of the consequences of a rapid U.S. withdrawal.
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Attacks by Iranian-backed groups in Iraq have increased in recent months, a senior U.S. official said on Thursday, casting doubt on the view Iran might have reduced its support for violence in the war.
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Experts say the stability of opinion has been striking, differentiating Iraq from other conflicts.
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A much-anticipated assessment of Iraq forecasts that the sectarian strife will continue to fracture the country without bold actions by Iraqi politicians.
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The number of civilians killed in Iraq is continuing to fall, data published by Iraqi ministries suggest.
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The odds of success in Iraq are less than even &#151; maybe as slight as one in four &#151; but the United States should continue to play a fighting role although a diminished one, for at least two or three years, a prominent analyst says in a new book.
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BAGHDAD, Dec. 29 -- The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David H. Petraeus, delivered a positive but cautious assessment Saturday of progress in the country in 2007, citing the drop-off in violence over the latter half of the year but warning that the insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq remains the...
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Britain's former top Iraq expert at the United Nations said in previously secret testimony that most government officials did not believe Iraq posed a threat in the months leading to the U.S.-led invasion, according to a new report.