The number of civilians who died as a result of violence in Iraq dropped for a third straight year in 2010, with improvement accelerating after the U.S. declared the official end of combat operations, a nonprofit group reported.
Civilian deaths from violence fell 15 percent to 3,976 this year as of Dec. 25, from 4,680 a year earlier, according to a report released today by U.K.-based Iraq Body Count.
Two-thirds of civilian deaths this year were caused by bombings attributed by authorities to sectarian and terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda in Iraq, the report said. Actions by U.S. troops led directly to 32 civilian deaths this year, compared with 64 in 2009, according to the group.
The overall civilian toll dropped by half in the first month after the U.S. declared the official end of combat operations in late August, and stayed at the lower levels through the end of the year.
Full story: Iraq Civilian Deaths Drop for Third Year as Toll Eases After U.S. Drawdown