U.S. death toll in Iraq on track to being lowest in nearly 2 years

The monthly toll of U.S. service members who have died in Iraq is on track to being the lowest in nearly two years, with at least 37 troop deaths recorded as of Tuesday, but the military cautioned it’s too early to declare a long-term trend.\nAt least 37 American service members have died so far in October, nearly a quarter from non-combat causes. Among them were three soldiers killed Tuesday when a bomb exploded as they patrolled southeast Baghdad, the military said.\nIt is the lowest number since 32 troops died in March 2006 and the second-lowest since 20 troop deaths in February 2004, according to an Associated Press count based on military figures.\nThat would be the second consecutive drop in monthly figures, after 65 Americans died in September and 84 in August.\nAt least 3,843 members of the U.S. military have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to the AP count.\nMaj. Winfield Danielson, a military spokesman in Baghdad, pointed to a number of likely reasons for the decline, including a U.S. security push that has driven militants out of former safe havens and a change in strategy that has placed troops closer to the population. That, in turn, has caused a rise in the number of tips from residents about roadside bombs and other dangers.\nHe also singled out the cease-fire call by radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who in August ordered his fighters to cease attacks against U.S.-led forces and other Iraqis for up to six months. Danielson said Iraqi forces also were increasingly taking charge of security operations.\nHe welcomed the lower numbers but stressed that it was too early to say it was a downward trend.\n“Have we turned a corner? It might be a little too early to say that,” he said. “It’s certainly encouraging.”\nIn August, the U.S. Army expressed concern that repeated deployments and tours of duty that have been stretched to 15 months were putting increasing pressure on military families and creating record suicide rates among soldiers.\nThere were 99 Army suicides last year.\nThe 2006 total – the highest rate in 26 years of record-keeping and the largest raw figure in 15 years – came despite Army efforts to set up new programs and strengthen old ones for providing mental health care to a force stretched by the longer-than-expected conflict in Iraq and the global counterterrorism war entering its sixth year.\nThe current pace of civilian deaths also would put October at less than 900. The figure last month was 1,023 and for August, 1,956, according to figures compiled by the AP from hospital, police and military officials, as well as accounts from reporters and photographers. Insurgent deaths are not included. Other counts differ and some have given higher civilian death tolls.\nSuspected Sunni and Shiite extremists appear to have stepped up attacks in recent weeks, however.\nAssociated Press writers Sinan Salaheddin and Bushra Juhi contributed to this report.