Iraq - Death tolls increase in continuing violence

Besides efforts by the Iraqi government to stamp out the upsurge in violence following the attack on the holy mosque in Samarra, the attacks have only increased. On Friday there was a brief calm throughout Baghdad. A curfew which was imposed at the weekend also reduced the death toll briefly. But even before the curfew was lifted dozens of Iraqis, both Shia and Sunni, were dying in renewed attacks [BBC]. On Sunday, 30 people died in total, 15 in a mortar assault on a Shia area of Baghdad and another 15 across the rest of Iraq, including three US soldiers [BBC].And the attacks continued into Monday and Tuesday. According to the Iraqi authorities at least 379 Iraqis have been killed since the attack on the al-Askari shrine and holy mosque, and more than 450 injured [BBC]. The government has denied reports by the Washington Post, quoting a source from a Baghdad morgue, that 1,300 had died since February 22nd. Other casualties in the continuing violence are coalition soldiers. On Monday two British soldiers died in a roadside bomb attack in Amara [BBC] increasing the total coalition dead to 2,503 [Casualty List]. The number of Iraqi dead is incalculable, but it is likely to run into many thousands. The violence, attacks, shootings, bombings and kidnappings seems set to continue for many years to come and there are fears that other factions may spread the violence into a wider conflict encompassing the whole of the Middle-East .The trial of Saddam Hussein resumed Tuesday after a two week adjournment. It is not clear where this trial is heading, nor when it might conclude. The trial has been adjourned until March 15th. And reporting on the whole bloody mess of what is left of Iraq is becoming all the more difficult as journalists are becoming a greater target by insurgents. Three Arab journalist died in the recent violence and more than 60 have died since the conflict began, 21 of them Iraqi.Meanwhile President George W Bush reinforced his stance in the War on Terror as he made a surprise visit to Afghanistan and made clear his determination to continue the fight. It was the President’s first visit to the country since it was invaded in November 2001 [CNN]