War claims 500 soldiers
U.S. lives lost reaches historic marker as fighting in Afghanistan intensifies
KABUL, Afghanistan – The deadliest three months for American forces in Afghanistan have pushed the U.S. death toll to at least 500, forcing a war long overshadowed by Iraq back into the headlines.
Larger, more sophisticated militant attacks have also caused a sharp rise in Afghan civilian deaths – at least 472 in the first seven months of the year, most in suicide bombings, according to an Associated Press count.
There are about 33,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, the most since the war began, meaning more troops than ever are patrolling the country’s mountainous terrain and exposed to ambushes and roadside bombs.
The U.S. military suffered 65 deaths in May, June and July, by far the deadliest three-month period in Afghanistan since the war began in 2001.
The previous deadliest three-month period was in the spring of 2005, with 45 U.S. deaths.
In July, more U.S. troops died in Afghanistan than in Iraq for the month, for the first time since the Iraq war started in 2003. In all, 92 U.S. troops have died in Afghanistan this year, a pace that would surpass last year’s death toll of 111.
The spike in violence is forcing U.S. leaders, including the presidential candidates, to call for still more troops here.
The U.S. government recognizes the situation Afghanistan “is serious and needs to be dealt with,” said Seth Jones, an Afghanistan expert at the Rand Corp., a Washington-based think tank that often does studies for the Pentagon.
“I think it is an important step that … the gravity of the situation has been recognized and that there are some steps in place to turn the tide in Afghanistan,” he said.
“Whether that is successful or not is of course an open question.”
Overall, at least 500 U.S. service members have died in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in support of the Afghan mission, according to an AP analysis based on Defense Department press releases.
“In terms of milestones, it’s important to point out that no casualty is more significant than any other,” said Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Mark Wright.
“Each service member is equally precious, and each loss of life is equally tragic.”
The count is based on information from U.S., NATO and Afghan officials, often impossible to independently verify because of the remote or dangerous locations of the incidents.