Center for Strategic and International Studies
Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy
1800 K Street, N.W. • Suite 400 • Washington, DC 20006
Phone: 1 (202) 775-3270 • Fax: 1 (202) 457-8746
Email: BurkeChair@csis.org
US and Coalition Casualties and
Costs of War in Iraq
Anthony Cordesman
Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy
ACordesman@aol.com
Revised: October 21, 2005
Cordesman: Casualties in Iraq 10/21/05 Page 2
This report provides an overview of US official data on casualties in the Iraq War,
Coalition casualties and the cost of the war. It was prepared to put the coming benchmark
of 2,000 US deaths in perspective, and to highlight the fact that cost and sacrifices in the
war go far beyond the number of US dead.
There are several points that should be kept in mind in making use of the data it contains:
•
Killed in action is a somewhat artificial category in a nation where high-risk activities are
constantly needed to reduce vulnerabilities to attack. Many of the accidents and other deaths listed are just
as much a result of combat conditions as actual enemy attacks.
•
These figures do include wounded, and show the seriousness of the wound to some effect.
Disabling wounds can be as much of a sacrifice as being killed in action. Ignoring the wounded and only
counting the dead does a major disservice to those who serve in Iraq.
•
The totals do not include what are reported to be more than 8,000 medical evacuees and returnees,
a number of which have also made a major sacrifice.
•
The data do not include civilians other than Department of Defense employees, and contractors.
The total number of contractor deaths seems to be around 270-300. Journalists and NGO personnel are not
included. (See http://icasualties.org/oif/Civ.aspx)
•
Several charts show British and other Coalition dead. The other Coalition dead include 27 Italians,
18 Ukrainians, 17