Something to be watching for

The story of the four female suicide bombers in two Iraqi cities drew front page coverage today, and well it might, considering the death toll (51 people according to initial reports). But how much attention will the media devote to a more significant Iraq story — the sharp decline in U.S. losses for the month of July?

As this morning, the July death toll for U.S. troops stood at 11 and the monthly combat death toll at six. The lowest monthly number of U.S. combat deaths since the invasion is eight, the total in May 2003. Enemy attacks are also down sharply. According to General Petreaus, daily attacks during the past two months have averaged 25 to 30, down from about 160 to 170 a little more than a year ago. And even with the bloody suicide bombings of Monday, Iraqi civilian casualties are also down.

It’s always front page news when U.S. casualties spike in a given month. Will the MSM “notice” what may well turn out to be a record low number of U.S. combat deaths this month? We’ll see. The Washington Post made no note of the July numbers to date, or the reality they reflect, in its story about the suicide bombings (see link above).

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