Study: Iraqi deaths between 392,000 and 942,000 with 654,000 best estimate

LONDON, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- More than 940,000 Iraqis may have died as a result of the Iraq war, according to a new U.S. medical study published in a British journal.

The respected British journal, The Lancet, published the results of a statistical study carried out by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. It concluded that the minimum number of deaths as a result of the Iraq war since the beginning of offensive operations by the United States and its allies to topple Saddam Hussien in March 2003 was over 392,000 and the maximum number was more than 942,000, with the most likely figure being 654,000

"We estimate that as of July, 2006, there have been 655,965 (392,979 - 942,636) excess deaths as a consequence of the war, which corresponds to 2.5 percent of the population in the study area," the report said. "Of post-invasion deaths 601,027 (436,369-793,663) were due to violence, the most common cause being gunfire," it said.

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