U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Kyle Page (right), a team leader with 3rd Combat Engineer Battalion, attached to Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, and an Estonian Defense Forces service member make their way over rubble in Northern Now Zad, Afghanistan, as a controlled detonation explodes behind them on Oct. 26, 2008. Marines are conducting a clearing operation of a known enemy stronghold in support of an Estonian Defense Force vehicle checkpoint. DoD photo by Sgt. Freddy G. Cantu, U.S. Marine Corps. (Released)From Strategy Page:
Last year, 151 American troops died in Afghanistan. That's still 12 percent below the rate (per thousand troops) of Iraq between 2004-7. However, the rate is more than twice what it was last year in Iraq (where it was 2 per thousand troops, versus 5 per thousand in Afghanistan.)
Unlike Iraq, Afghanistan has a major NATO participation (who have a third more troops than the U.S.) Last year, 138 NATO troops were killed in Afghanistan, a rate of 3.45 per thousand troops. However, there's a catch. Most NATO nations do not allow their troops in Afghanistan to fight. Peacekeeping (in those parts of Afghanistan where there is little violence), but not fighting (in the Taliban infested south). There, a third of the NATO force (mainly British Dutch and Canadian) do most of the fighting.
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