Cost of the War in Iraq
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Paying the Price

Hot facts from the study by the Institute for Policy Studies and Foreign Policy In Focus

 

The Mounting Costs of the Iraq War

U.S. military killed in Iraq: 1,469

Number of U.S. troops wounded in combat since the war began: 10,938

Monthly average before the June 28, 2004 “transition”: 449

Monthly casualty average (dead and wounded) since the “transition”: 802


Iraqi soldiers and insurgents killed since May 1, 2003: approximately 24,000

Iraqi civilians killed: Estimates range from 15,000 - 100,000

Number of civilian contractors killed: 207


Number of insurgents in Iraq:

November 2003 estimate: 5,000 fighters

December 2004 estimate: 40,000 fighters and 200,000 Iraqi sympathizers


What the Iraq war has created, according to the U.S. National Intelligence Council: “a training and recruitment ground (for terrorists), and an opportunity for terrorists to enhance their technical skills.”

Effect on al Qaeda of the Iraq War, according to International Institute for Strategic Studies: “Accelerated recruitment”

Percentage of Americans who believe the situation in Iraq was “worth going to war over”: 39%

Percentage of Americans who believe that the Iraq War has worsened the U.S. image in the world: 65%

Percentage of people polled in 21 countries around the world who believed Mr Bush’s re-election to the White House made the world more dangerous: 58%

Percentage of Iraqis expressing “no confidence” in U.S. civilian authorities or coalition forces: 80%

Fraction of the 148,000 U.S. soldiers in Iraq who are Guard members or Reservists: 4 out of 10

Status of Army National Guard recruitment: down 30%

Average number of attacks by Iraqi resistance per week: 425

What General James Helmly, the Army Reserve’s commander, told the Pentagon in December 2004: his men were “degenerating into a broken force”

Percentage of reserve troops who earn lower salaries while on deployment: 30-40%

Percentage of U.S. police departments missing officers due to Iraq deployments: 44%


The bill so far: $146.6 billion

February 14 request from the President: $61 billion more


What $207 billion could have paid for in the U.S.:

Affordable housing units: 1.86 million or

Health care for uninsured Americans for one year: 47 million or

Scholarships for university students: 40 million

Head Start slots for a year: 27 million

Port container inspectors: 3 million


The $146 billion already allocated could pay for 2 years worth of:

Food for half the hungry people in the world and

A comprehensive global AIDS treatment and prevention program and

Clean water and sanitation throughout the developing world and

Childhood immunizations for all children in the developing world


Estimated cost of war to date to every U.S. household: $2,000

Average monthly cost of the Vietnam War, adjusted for inflation: $5.2 billion

Average monthly cost of the Iraq War: $5.8 billion

Amount contractor Halliburton is alleged to have charged for meals never served to troops and for cost overruns on fuel deliveries: $221 million

Kickbacks received by Halliburton employees from subcontractors: $6 million


More facts, figures, and analysis at: www.ips-dc.org

The Institute for Policy Studies is a progressive multi-issue think tank that links ideas to action for peace, justice and the environment. Foreign Policy In Focus, a joint project of the Institute for Policy Studies and the Interhemispheric Resource Center, is a “think tank without walls” that functions as an international network of more than 650 policy analysts and advocates. IPS/FPIF, 733 15th Street NW, Suite 1020, Washington, DC 20005; 202-234-9382.

A Study by the Institute for Policy Studies and Foreign Policy In Focus. By Phyllis Bennis and the IPS Iraq Task Force; the first comprehensive accounting of the costs of the war on the United States, Iraq, and the World. Report released September 30, 2004. This factsheet revised February 17, 2005.

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