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Paying the Price: The Mounting Costs of the Iraq War

A Study by the Institute for Policy Studies and Foreign Policy In Focus

Just the Numbers

Updated 7/20/04 - Print-ready : http://www.ips-dc.org/iraq/costsofwar/numbers.pdf

• Total number of coalition military deaths between the start of war and July 20, 2004: 1,018 (897 U.S.)
  
• Of those, the number killed after President George W. Bush declared “an end to major combat operations,” May 1, 2003: 759
  
• Number of U.S. troops wounded in combat since the war began: 5,804 (Number ill or injured in “non-combat” incidents estimated to be over 11,000)
  
• Number of U.S. troops wounded in combat since President Bush declared “an end to major combat operations”: 5,263
  
• Number of civilian contractors, missionaries, and civilian workers killed: 50-90
  
• Number of international media workers killed: 30
  
• Iraqi civilians killed: 11,252-13,213
  
• Iraqi civilians injured: 40,000 (est.)
  
• Iraqi soldiers and insurgents killed prior to May 1, 2003: 4,895 to 6,370
  

• The bill so far: $126.1 billion
  
• Additional amount to cover operations through 2004: $25 billion
  

• What $151 billion could have paid for in the U.S.:
  

  Housing vouchers: 23 million
  Health care for uninsured Americans for one year: 27 million
  Years of salary for elementary school teachers: 3 million
  New fire engines: 678,200
  Head Start slots for a year: 20 million
  
  
  

• $151 billion could also pay for 2 years worth of:

  Food for half the hungry people in the world and
  A comprehensive global AIDS treatment and prevention program and
  Clean water and sanitation throughout the developing world and
  Childhood immunizations for all children in the developing world
  
  

• Estimated long-term cost of war to every U.S. household: $3,415
  
• Amount contractor Halliburton is alleged to have charged for meals never served to troops and for cost overruns on fuel deliveries: $221 million
  
• Kickbacks received by Halliburton employees from subcontractors: $6 million
  

• Percentage of Americans who now feel that “the situation in Iraq was not worth going to war over”: 54%
  
• Percentage of Iraqis who said they would feel safer if U.S. and other foreign troops left the country immediately: 55%
  

• Percentage of U.S. soldiers in Iraq reporting low morale: 52%
  
• Percentage of soldiers who said they would not re-enlist: 50%
  
• Percentage of wounded unable to return to duty: 64%
  

• Number of soldiers whose tours of duty have been extended by the Army: 20,000
  
• Percentage of reserve troops who earn lower salaries while on deployment: 30-40%
  
• Fraction of National Guard troops among U.S. force now in Iraq: 1/3
  
• Percentage of U.S. police departments missing officers due to Iraq deployments: 44%
  

• Effect on al Qaeda of the Iraq war, according to International Institute for Strategic Studies: “Accelerated recruitment”
  
• Estimated number of al Qaeda terrorists as of May 2004: 18,000 with 1,000 active in Iraq
  
• Percentage of Iraqis expressing “no confidence” in U.S. civilian authorities or coalition forces: 80%