Monday, April 18, 2005

Dead aid worker obtained Iraqi civilian casualty count

Buried somewhat in this story about the death of an aid worker, Marla Ruzicka, in Iraq, is this nugget:
Ms. Ruzicka had also obtained new numbers on civilian casualties from the American military, which does not normally release them, and was eager to talk.

But I haven't seen any reporting on the actual number released. Has anyone else seen any other reporting on this? Is there going to be a report? I wonder.

Hm. Here's something from the San Jose Mercury News, which suggests not that the military had released the numbers, but that she had gone door-to-door to get them.
Ruzicka had been in Iraq conducting door-to-door surveys trying to determine the number of civilian casualties in the country. She is among several foreign aid workers to have been killed there.

And from the LAT, a long pretty good article, overall.
The records they compiled on more than 2,000 dead provided an early accounting of the war's toll. The currently accepted figure, based largely on news accounts, is between 17,000 and 20,000, said Newsweek reporter Owen Matthews, a friend of Ruzicka, who said her compilation stood out because of its detail.

Ruzicka's website:

Permalink posted by Jonathan : 7:20 AM



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