How many Iraqi soldiers and civilians have been killed?
Reliable figures are hard to come by. On March 31, several newspapers estimated that about 1,000 Iraqi soldiers and nearly 600 civilians had been killed, with 4,500 injured. The numbers must be viewed critically. For one thing, it is often difficult to distinguish Iraqi civilians from soldiers. 6) News reports cite the Republican Guard’s elite Medina Division. What does Medina refer to? The military division is named after Medina, a city of more than 600,000 in western Saudi Arabia. It is considered Islam’s second-holiest place, after Mecca. Mohammed migrated to Medina in 622 after being persecuted by the Meccan establishment. It is also the site of Mohammed’s tomb. 7) Under the Taliban in Afghanistan, women could not even show their faces in public. How are Iraqi women treated? Unlike many countries in the region, Iraq’s government is officially secular. Women can get full educations, run for office, drive and serve in the armed forces. Veils are not required. Recently some women have
