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Length: 2:57
STEPHEN FRAZIER: Now to a troubling report on the
spiraling death toll in Iraq. The United Nations is
saying that insurgent attacks killed almost 4,000
Iraqi civilians last month. And to put that in
perspective, that is much higher than the number of
U.S. troops killed during the entire war.
Let's bring in Michael Ware in Baghdad, who is just
all too familiar with this kind of violence.
What is driving this now, Michael?
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Stephen,
what's behind this? And you're right to point out
what the United Nations is saying is that in the past
month, more Iraqi civilians died in that month than
any other since the U.S. invasion in 2003. It's
saying its civilian deaths are ever increasing. When
you add it on the back of the U.N.'s last report,
that's 13,500 people in just four months.
Now, the U.N. cites this as a result of terrorism and
sectarian violence. It also notes that revenge is
increasingly a factor as each sect, Sunni and Shia,
responds accordingly.
This is starting to fit closer and closer to U.S.
military intelligence definitions of civil war, where
they said the violence will gather its own momentum.
I think the U.N. is starting to reflect that.
It also pointed to disruption of entire communities
to varying degrees, with whole neighborhoods
displaced. This again touches upon what people here
on the ground, Iraqis enduring this, prefer to call a
form of ethnic cleansing.
The U.N. also noted that professionals and educators
are being targeted. The educational system of Iraq
has been disrupted.
So this very much is a tragic time for the Iraqi
people.
FRAZIER: So, clearly, Michael, this will be coming up
when President Bush meets with Prime Minister
al-Maliki in Jordan at this conference that they're
planning. Are you getting any advanced read on
specific measures that might be discussed to try and
stem this civilian violence?
WARE: No, not at this stage. What we do know from the
joint statement from both the Iraqi prime minister
and President Bush is that the meeting to take place
just in a week from now in Amman, Jordan, will focus
on the progress of the war three years on, on the
transfer of security responsibility to the Iraqi
government, and perhaps tellingly the role of
regional players in supporting Iraq.
Beyond that, there's no specifics. But those three
agenda items alone are weighty enough. And all of
which play into the level of civilian violence and
the sectarian killings.
FRAZIER: And that reference to regional players, of
course, Michael, Iran and Syria, the new -- the big
new players in that deal.
Thank you for those insights.
Michael Ware from Baghdad.