List of bombings during the Iraq War

"Terrorism in Iraq" redirects here. For bombings following the withdrawal of US troops, see List of bombings during the Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013). For other bombings of Iraq, see Bombing of Iraq.
The 23 November 2006 Sadr City bombings were a series of car bombs and mortar attacks in Sadr City that killed 257 people.

Since 2003 bombings in Iraq have killed thousands of people, mostly Iraqi civilians, and are considered to constitute a new phenomenon in the history of warfare. Suicide bombings have been used as a tactic in other armed struggles, but their frequency and lethality in Iraq is unprecedented.[1]

Perpetrators

A 2005 Human Rights Watch report analysed the insurgency in Iraq and highlighted, "The groups that are most responsible for the abuse, namely al-Qaeda in Iraq and its allies, Ansar al-Sunna and the Islamic State of Iraq, have all targeted civilians for abductions and executions. The first two groups have repeatedly boasted about massive car bombs and suicide bombs in mosques, markets, bus stations and other civilian areas. Such acts are war crimes and in some cases may constitute crimes against humanity, which are defined as serious crimes committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population."[2]

Analysis

A 2008 RAND Research brief on counter insurgency in Iraq: 2003 - 2006[3] depicts a chart that shows in June and July 2004, Iraqi insurgents began to shift their focus away from attacking U.S. and coalition forces with roadside bombs and instead began targeting the Iraqi population with suicide bombers and vehicle-borne IEDs. By increasing the number of suicide bombings against civilians and accepting their targeting in retribution, the insurgents sought to expose the weakness of the coalition-Iraqi security and reconstruction apparatus, threaten those who collaborated with the government, generate funds and propaganda, and increasingly enact sectarian revenge. The U.S. failure to adapt to this shift had dramatic consequences. By June 2004, U.S. deaths represented less than 10% of overall deaths on the battlefield and Iraqi deaths represented more than 90% - a figure that remained constant for the next 18 months of the War.

An analysis by Iraq Body Count and co-authors published in 2011 concluded that at least 12,284 civilians were killed in at least 1,003 suicide bombings in Iraq between 2003 and 2010. The study reveals that suicide bombings kill 60 times as many civilians as soldiers [4][5]

Bombings

This article lists all major bombings of the Second Iraq War. For bombings that occurred following the withdrawal of US troops see List of bombings during the Iraqi Insurgency (2011-present)

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

References

  1. ↑ Williams, Carol J. (June 2, 2005). "Suicide attacks soaring in Iraq". Post-gazette.com. Retrieved January 31, 2009.
  2. ↑ "Iraq: Insurgent Groups Responsible for War Crimes". Human Rights News. October 3, 2005. Retrieved August 29, 2006.
  3. ↑ "Counterinsurgency in Iraq (2003-2006)". Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  4. ↑ "Casualties of suicide bombings in Iraq, 2003-2010". iraqbodycount.org. September 3, 2011. Retrieved March 20, 2012.
  5. ↑ "Casualties in civilians and coalition soldiers from suicide bombings in Iraq, 2003—10: a descriptive study". The Lancet. September 3, 2011. Retrieved March 20, 2012.
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