4/1/2004: Over 600 members of the US armed forces have died as a result of the invasion of Iraq with deaths effecting families in every US state. The Pentagon now says that in the first year of war in Iraq, the military made over 18,000 medical evacuations - representing 11,700 casualties. But even this number could be low since the military is increasingly outsourcing jobs and using private contractors as mercenaries. The exact number of Iraqis who have died as a result of the US occupation is not known, but Iraqi Body Count has documented 7,350 deaths which resulted directly from coalition military actions just "during the "major-combat" phase prior to May 1st 2003".

On Wednesday March 31st, four American contractors in Iraq were burned alive and had their bodies dragged through the streets of Fallujah before being hung from a bridge as a large crowd consisting largely of young children chanted that Fallujah would be America's graveyard. "The Group of Sheikh Ahmad Yassin" claimed responsibility for the attack, "saying it was retribution for the controversial Israeli assassination last month of the spiritual leader of Hamas".

Although some corporate media sources are trying to pretend that the situation in Fallujah is unique, anti-American sentiments are growing in all parts of Iraq. In the North, Kurds have been calling for their own state and many are not happy with the idea of a future where they have less autonomy than they did before the US invasion. In addition, Turkey is pressuring the US to attack remnants of the PKK who have setup camps in Northern Iraq and have widespread support among the Iraqi Kurds. In the South, there is growing anger among the Shi'as against the US due to high unemployment rates and dislike for the US imposed constitution. In central Iraq, many Sunnis are worried that they will be marginalized under any future government.

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Reports From Bay Area Journalists and Activists Who Have Visited Iraq: 1 | 2