Iraqi civilian death count provokes political attack

Parties opposed to the war in Iraq have seized on a new study that claims at least 100,000 civilians have died as a result of the action and its aftermath.

Medical journal The Lancet claims the risk of death by violence for civilians in Iraq is now 58 times higher than before the US-led invasion.

Foreign secretary Jack Straw said his government would examine the findings "with very great care".

Lib Dem leader Charles Kennedy said: "Let no-one forget that in modern warfare, 90 per cent of the casualties tend to be civilian.

"That is why war should always be undertaken as a last resort.

"Ordinary Iraqis suffered under Saddam, but this report underlines the costs of the military action, 100,000 civilians dead, half of them women and children.

"It is also an enduring shame that Iraqi casualties have not been counted before and that the coalition has failed to put that right.

"These figures may well be disputed, but The Lancet has rightly drawn our attention to the dismaying scale of the deaths.

"The doctors who carried out this survey, apparently risking their own lives, showed great courage."

Horror

Alex Salmond said: "This estimate reflects the full scale horror of the crisis in Iraq. Although this is just one report it is incumbent upon us all to reflect on the total devastation of this illegal war which this report implies.

"This is also one more estimate on the number of civilian deaths than the Government has undertaken.

"So far they have not produced their estimate of the numbers of civilian dead and injured. The prime minister seems to have abdicated all sense of moral responsibility over the conflict.

"The prime minister has stated that US troops are not killing civilians in Iraq. I for one would like to know if he still stands by that assertion and how he can, in the face of the ever spiralling evidence, that the outcome of this illegal war is bloodshed, murder and insecurity."

Plaid Cymru’s parliamentary leader Elfyn Llwyd expressed his horror at the report saying: "Our party has been a strong critic of the US led occupation of Iraq and on a number of occasions we have criticised the MoD for failing to keep an accurate account of the number of Iraqi civilian casualties, but the figures published today are worse than we could have ever imagined.

"This report undermines once and for all Tony Blair’s claims that Iraq, and indeed the world is a safer place since the invasion in March 2003.

"The figures cited in the report make it clearer than ever that not only did the Prime Minister mislead us over the reasons for the invasion, but that he continues to mislead us over the situation in Iraq since the war ended.

"The government needs to seriously reconsider its position in Iraq and give us a clear timetable for the withdrawal of US and UK troops.

"How can Tony Blair and George Bush ever hope to win the 'hearts and minds' of the Iraqis when all they have caused is devastation and bloodshed.