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Syria conflict:
76,000 die in deadliest year
3 Jan BBC
The year 2014 was the deadliest year yet in Syria's four-year
conflict, with over 76,000 killed, activists say.The UK-based Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights said 17,790 of the dead were civilians,
including 3,501 children.
Meanwhile more than 15,000 died in conflicts in Iraq in 2014, making
it that country's worst year since 2007.
Much of the violence comes as a result of advances by Islamic State
and other militants groups in the two countries.US-led air strikes
against Islamic State (IS) militants, fighting between government troops
and rebels in Syria, and sectarian violence in Iraq have also accounted
for large numbers of deaths.
The air strikes continued on Thursday, with 17 against IS targets
near the Syrian cities of Raqqa, Kobane and Deir al-Zour and 12 near the
Iraqi cities of Falluja, Mosul and Sinjar.
Meanwhile Syrian President Bashar al-Assad marked the new year with a
visit to front-line troops in the Damascus suburb of Jobar.
Mr Assad's Twitter and Facebook accounts showed pictures of him
talking to two soldiers by a tank and shaking hands with a third.The
Syrian figures cannot be independently verified, but the Observatory
says its draws on sources all across the country.
It said a total of 76,021 had died, slightly up on 2013's toll of
73,447 and bringing the total number of deaths since the conflict began
in 2011 to more than 200,000.Of the 2014 deaths, the Observatory said.
At least 22,627 were government soldiers or members of pro-government
militias Almost 17,000 were militants from groups including IS and al-Nusra
Front More than 15,000 were from moderate rebel groups and Islamist
factions Civilians made up 17,790 of the dead On the same day, the Iraqi
government published its figures on casualties in 2014.It said 15,538
people had died and more than 22,000 were injured during the course of
the year.
The UK-based NGO Iraq Body Count gave an even higher figure of 17,073
civilian deaths.The NGO said there was a “new brutality on the ground
and renewed attack from the air”, with IS and the Iraqi army causing
thousands of casualties, and US-led air strikes also responsible for
civilian deaths. The year began with the government losing control of
Falluja and parts of Ramadi in western Iraq.
In June, a huge offensive by IS left large parts of northern Iraq in
militant hands, including the second city Mosul.
The death toll for 2014 from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
is just the latest grim statistic from years of war.
An estimated 10.8m people are in need inside SyriaOver 10m displaced
by the conflict 3.2m refugees in neighbouring countries More than 50% of
the country live in extreme poverty Half of the country's children are
not in school
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