Afghanistan Casualties: Military Forces
and Civilians
Susan G. Chesser
Information Research Specialist
April 12, 2010
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
R41084
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress
Afghanistan Casualties: Military Forces and Civilians
Summary
This report collects statistics from a variety of sources on casualties sustained during Operation
Enduring Freedom (OEF), which began on October 7, 2001, and is ongoing. OEF actions take
place primarily in Afghanistan; however, OEF casualties also includes American casualties in
Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Guantanamo Bay (Cuba), Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kenya,
Kyrgyzstan, the Philippines, Seychelles, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Yemen.
Casualty data of U.S. military forces are compiled by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), as
tallied from the agency’s press releases. Also included are statistics on those wounded but not
killed. Statistics may be revised as circumstances are investigated and as records are processed
through the U.S. military’s casualty system. More frequent updates are available at DOD’s
website at http://www.defenselink.mil/news/ under “Casualty Update.”
A detailed casualty summary of U.S. military forces that includes data on deaths by cause, as well
as statistics on soldiers wounded in action, is available at the following DOD website:
http://siadapp.dmdc.osd.mil/personnel/CASUALTY/castop.htm.
NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) does not post casualty statistics of the
military forces of partner countries on the ISAF website at http://www.isaf.nato.int/. ISAF press
releases state that it is ISAF policy to defer to the relevant national authorities to provide notice of
any fatality. For this reason, this report uses fatality data of coalition forces as compiled by
CNN.com and posted online at http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2004/oef.casualties/index.html.
Casualty data of Afghan civilians are reported quarterly by the United Nations Assistance Mission
to Afghanistan (UNAMA). Deaths of Afghan National Police and Afghan National Army
personnel are reported by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction in the
quarterly reports to Congress that are required as part of P.L. 110-181.
Because the estimates of Afghan casualties contained in this report are based on varying time
periods and have been created using different methodologies, readers should exercise caution
when using them and should look to them as guideposts rather than as statements of fact.
This report will be updated as needed.
Congressional Research Service
Afghanistan Casualties: Military Forces and Civilians
he following tables present data on U.S. military casualties in Operation Enduring
Freedom, deaths of coalition partners in Afghanistan, and Afghan civilian casualties,
T respectively.
Table 1. Operation Enduring Freedom, U.S. Fatalities and Wounded
as of April 9, 2010, 10 a.m. EDT from October 7, 2001
Fatalities In
Fatalities in
and Around
Other
Total
Afghanistana
Locationsb
Fatalities Wounded
in
Action
Hostile
2,386
c 744
8
752
Returned to Duty
within 72 Hours
Non-Hostile
3,124
d 207 69 276
Not Returned to Duty
within 72 Hours
Total 951
77
1,028
Total
5,510
Source: http://www.defense.gov/news/casualty.pdf
a. “Fatalities in and around Afghanistan” include casualties that occurred in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and
Uzbekistan.
b. “Other locations” includes casualties that occurred in Guantanamo Bay (Cuba), Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia,
Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, the Philippines, Seychel es, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Yemen.
c. According to the Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, as amended through 31
August 2005, a “hostile casualty” is a victim of a terrorist activity or a casualty as the result of combat or
attack by any force against U.S. forces, available at http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA43918.
d. The above-named reference defines a “nonhostile casualty” as a casualty that is not directly attributable to
hostile action or terrorist activity, such as casualties due to the elements, self-inflicted wounds, or combat
fatigue.
Table 2. Deaths of Coalition Partners in Afghanistan
Country
# of Deaths
Country
# of Deaths
Australia 11
Lithuania
1
Belgium 1
Netherlands
21
Canada 141
Norway
5
Czech Republic
3
Poland
16
Denmark 29
Portugal
2
Estonia 7
Romania 12
Finland 1
South
Korea
1
France 40
Spain
28
Germany 39
Sweden
4
Hungary 2
Turkey
2
Italy 22
United
Kingdom
281
Latvia 3
—
—
Total Non-U.S. Coalition Fatalities
672
Source: CNN U.S. and Coalition Casualties, http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2004/oef.casualties/2010.02.html as
viewed on April 12, 2010, 9:30 a.m., EDT.
Congressional Research Service
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Afghanistan Casualties: Military Forces and Civilians
Table 3. Afghan Casualties
Group
Period
# of Deaths
Note
Afghan Civilians
2009 2,412
killed
67% of civilian deaths were
attributed to actions of anti-
3,566 injureda
Government elements (78% of these
deaths were caused by improvised
explosive devices and suicide
attacks).
25% of civilian deaths were
attributed to pro-Government
forces.
8% of civilian deaths were the result
of cross-fire or improperly
detonated ordnance.
2008 2,118b
2007 1,523c
Afghan National Army
January-December 27, 2009
465d
2007-2008 537e
Afghan National Police
January-December 27, 2009
794f
2007-2008 1,412g
Sources: Compiled by the Congressional Research Service from noted sources.
a. United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan, Human Rights Unit, Afghanistan: Annual Report on
Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict, 2009, January 2010, p. I, http://unama.unmissions.org/Portals/UNAMA/
human%20rights/Protection%20of%20Civilian%202009%20report%20English.pdf.
b. United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan, Human Rights Unit, Afghanistan: Annual Report on
Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict, 2008, January 2009, p. 12, http://unama.unmissions.org/Portals/
UNAMA/human%20rights/UNAMA_09february-Annual%20Report_PoC%202008_FINAL_11Feb09.pdf.
c. United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan, Afghanistan: Annual Report on Protection of Civilians in Armed
Conflict, 2008, Human Rights Unit, January 2009, p. 12, http://unama.unmissions.org/Portals/UNAMA/
human%20rights/UNAMA_09february-Annual%20Report_PoC%202008_FINAL_11Feb09.pdf.
d. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, Quarterly Report to the United States Congress, July
30, 2009, p. 55. http://www.sigar.mil/reports/quarterlyreports/Jul09/pdf/Report_-_July_2009.pdf; Quarterly
Report to the United States Congress, October 30, 2009, p. 62, http://www.sigar.mil/reports/quarterlyreports/
Oct09/pdf/SIGAROct2009Web.pdf; and Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, Quarterly
Report to the United States Congress, January 30, 2010, p. 64, http://www.sigar.mil/pdf/quarterlyreports/
jan2010/pdf/SIGAR_Jan2010.pdf.
e. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, Quarterly Report to the United States Congress, July
30, 2009, p. 55, http://www.sigar.mil/reports/quarterlyreports/Jul09/pdf/Report_-_July_2009.pdf
f.
Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, Quarterly Report to the United States Congress, July
30, 2009, p. 60, http://www.sigar.mil/reports/quarterlyreports/Jul09/pdf/Report_-_July_2009.pdf; Quarterly
Report to the United States Congress, October 30, 2009, p. 66, http://www.sigar.mil/reports/quarterlyreports/
Oct09/pdf/SIGAROct2009Web.pdf; and Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, Quarterly
Report to the United States Congress, January 30, 2010, p. 69, http://www.sigar.mil/pdf/quarterlyreports/
jan2010/pdf/SIGAR_Jan2010.pdf.
g. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, Quarterly Report to the United States Congress, July
30, 2009, p. 60, http://www.sigar.mil/reports/quarterlyreports/Jul09/pdf/Report_-_July_2009.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
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Afghanistan Casualties: Military Forces and Civilians
Author Contact Information
Susan G. Chesser
Information Research Specialist
schesser@crs.loc.gov, 7-9547
Congressional Research Service
3