"Contractor Deaths in Iraq Soar to Record

By JOHN M. BRODER and JAMES RISEN
Published: May 19, 2007

WASHINGTON, May 18 — Casualties among private contractors in Iraq have soared to record levels this year, setting a pace that seems certain to turn 2007 into the bloodiest year yet for the civilians who work alongside the American military in the war zone, according to new government numbers.

At least 146 contract workers were killed in Iraq in the first three months of the year, by far the highest number for any quarter since the war began in March 2003, according to the Labor Department, which processes death and injury claims for those working as United States government contractors in Iraq.

That brings the total number of contractors killed in Iraq to at least 917, along with more than 12,000 wounded in battle or injured on the job, according to government figures and dozens of interviews.

...came closer to the number of American military deaths during the same period — 244 — than during any other quarter since the war began, according to official figures...

...But a spokesman for American International Group, the insurance company that covers about 80 percent of the contractor work force in Iraq, said it had seen a sharp increase in death and injury claims in recent months. The Labor Department records show that in addition to the 146 dead in the first three months this year, another 3,430 contractors filed claims for wounds or injuries suffered in Iraq, also a quarterly record. The number of casualties, though, may be much higher because the government’s statistical database is not complete. ..."


Incredibly brave people there supporting the US on the ground every day, trying to make a differance.

Make no mistake - the US and combined Services could not possibly opperate without the contractors who do just about every support role from truck driving to security.

As the US cracks down however, the contractors are seen as softer - easier targets of opportunitty.

AIG premiums are SOARING, many contractors are starting to feel the pinch.

R