Iraq: 35 US Soldiers Dead in November. Are we supposed to cheer for this?

[tekisui]

BAGHDAD - November was on course to be the least deadly for American troops in Iraq since March 2006, with the U.S. military reporting its 35th death of the month Thursday.

The figures were a sign of respite from years of bloodshed that forced some 2 million Iraqis to flee their homes and prompted the buildup of nearly 30,000 additional U.S. forces.

The U.S. military said an American soldier had been killed by small-arms fire Wednesday in Baghdad. The number of U.S. deaths has plummeted since May, when 126 Americans died as the influx of troops gained momentum. Thirty-one troops died in March 2006.

In the past six months, streets that had been closed during the height of sectarian fighting have reopened — with strict limits. Checkpoints, roadblocks, concrete blast walls and American and Iraqi patrols are still the norm in many parts of the capital.

But some of the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who fled their homeland for neighboring Syria and Jordan and beyond are returning — with money, transport and protection from their government. The program also seeks to win favor from neighboring countries such as Syria and Jordan that are struggling with an estimated 2.2 million Iraqi refugees.

More than One a day, nearing the end of the deadliest year in Iraq. How can anyone be proud of this?


edit--link: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071129/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq;_ylt=Ak4gyW2vb.3hYdzFcZBmCGJI2ocA

[catmandu57]

1. Yes we are

The surge worked don't you see.:sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[tekisui]

2. Tell that to the 35 and counting families feeling loss this month.

Not to mention to the Iraqis--- What exactly has the *Iraqi Government* done this year, with our precious surge?