US death toll 'a sober moment'

2008-03-25 07:29

Baghdad - The US military blamed Iranian-backed Shi'ite militia factions for a spate of rocket attacks that struck the Green Zone and surrounding areas, a day after the overall US death toll in the five-year conflict rose to 4 000.

The White House called the grim milestone "a sober moment" and said President George W Bush spends time every day thinking about those who have lost their lives in battle.

"He bears the responsibility for the decisions that he made," White House press secretary Dana Perino said on Monday. "He also bears the responsibility to continue to focus on succeeding."

The American deaths came on Sunday, the same day rockets pounded the US-protected Green Zone in Baghdad and a wave of attacks left at least 61 Iraqis dead nationwide.

Rockets made by Iran

Rear Admiral Gregory Smith, a US military spokesperson in Baghdad, said on Monday that the rockets fired into the Green Zone, also known as the International Zone, were Iranian-made and supplied by the Quds Force, an elite unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

The US military has accused Iran of arming and funding Shi'ite extremists to fight American forces in Iraq. Iran denies the allegation.

US Embassy spokesperson Philip Reeker said two government employees - an American and a Jordanian - were seriously wounded and six other people required medical attention after Sunday's volley of rocket attacks.

Local hospital and police officials said at least 12 Iraqis were killed and 30 more were wounded in rocket or mortar blasts that apparently fell short after being aimed at the Green Zone from scattered areas of eastern Baghdad.

"We have assessed the rockets fired yesterday into the International Zone and those that struck neighbourhoods nearby, were the responsibility of Iranian-backed special groups," Smith told The Associated Press in an e-mail.

The military uses the term special groups to refer to Shi'ite extremists who continue attacks despite a cease-fire order by radical Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to his Mahdi Army militia.

"The attacks show the indiscriminate violence these groups carry out in Iraq as the major loss of life yesterday was to innocent Iraqi men, women and children," Smith said.

'You regret every casualty, every loss'

The deaths of four US soldiers in a roadside bombing at about 22:00 on Sunday in southern Baghdad pushed to 4 000 the number of American service members killed as the war enters its sixth year. Another soldier was wounded in the attack, the military said.

The AP count of 4 000 deaths is based on U.S. military reports and includes eight civilians who worked for the Department of Defence.

"You regret every casualty, every loss," Vice-President Dick Cheney said. "The president is the one that has to make that decision to send young men and women into harm's way. It never gets any easier."

An American military official in Baghdad said each US death is "equally tragic" and underscored the need to keep up the fight.

"There have been some significant gains. However, this enemy is resilient and will not give up, nor will we," military spokesperson Navy Lieutenant Patrick Evans said. "There's still a lot of work to be done."

- AP