2007 now the deadliest year for U.S. troops in IraqStory Highlights

Five U.S. troop deaths Monday in Iraq bring total for year to 854

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Five U.S. soldiers were killed in Iraq on Monday, making 2007 the deadliest for the American military in the Iraq war.


U.S. soldiers honor two fallen comrades at a memorial in Mosul, Iraq, on Saturday.

The grim record came despite lower death rates in recent months, which were not enough to offset death tolls that topped 100 during three months in the spring.

The five were killed in two separate roadside bombings, according to Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, a military official who briefed reporters in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on Tuesday.

According to a CNN count of Pentagon figures, 854 U.S. service members have died so far in 2007. The next highest death toll was in 2004, when 849 were killed.

The total number of U.S. military deaths in Iraq stands at 3,857, including seven civilian contractors of the Defense Department.

The high number of deaths this year corresponds with the U.S. troop buildup in late summer called the "surge" and a crackdown on insurgents in and near Baghdad.

Monthly death tolls were highest in the first part of the year: 83 deaths in January, 81 in February and 81 in March. Numbers peaked in the next three months, with 104 deaths in April, 126 in May and 101 in June.

The numbers have dropped from that level since -- with 79 in July, 84 in August, 65 in September, 40 in October and 10 so far in November.

The Iraq war began in March of 2003 and in that year there were 486 U.S. military deaths.

In 2004, major offensives were responsible for many fatalities, including the massive operation in Falluja in November and fighting between U.S. troops and Shiite militants in Najaf.

The number of deaths in 2005 was 846 and in 2006 it was 822.

Rest of article: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/11/06/iraq.main/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

bloodthirsty idiots ruling us!