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December 4, 2008 3:56:22 PM CST

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Violence Up in Iraq: Pentagon

Posted Mar 12, 08 5:44 AM CDT in World 

(Newser) – Violent incidents in Iraq are up since January, according to a new Pentagon report. The rise is said to be a response in part to US-led operations against militants launched at the beginning of the year, and it includes more "high-profile" suicide bombings aimed at maximizing the number of casualties. The report called the increase a "short term" result of military offensives against al Qaeda in Iraq and other insurgents.

Nineveh and Diyalah provinces were particularly hard-hit, because militants moved there after abandoning other parts of the country better protected by US-allied Sunni militias, according to officials. But overall, deaths from sectarian violence have dropped by 90% since June, when the US troop surge peaked, says the Pentagon, and total civilian deaths were down 70%.

Source Reuters

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Iraqi police patrol Baghdad's al-Amil neighborhood Saturday, Feb. 9, 2008. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)   (Associated Press)
Volunteer Iraqi civilians , hold their rifles during a symbolic ceremony for the security progress in the area at the city of Salman Pak about 30 miles (45 kilometers), south of Baghdad, Iraq, on Friday...   (Associated Press)
Iraqi Shiite women visit grave of their loved ones who died in ongoing violence in Iraq, in the holy Shiite city of Najaf, Friday, Feb. 1, 2008. (AP Photo/Alaa al-Marjani)   (Associated Press)
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