The level of violent deaths is far higher than in the last years of SaddamHussein's rule. At least 100,000 Iraqi civilians have died, most of them atthe hands of U.S. forces but increasingly from terrorist groups and Iraqigovernment death squads. Thousands of Iraqi soldiers and police have also been killed.

CRIME AT RECORD LEVELS:

Violent crime, including kidnapping, rape, and armed robbery, is at record levels. There is a proliferation of small arms, and private militias are growing rapidly. A Lebanon-type multifaceted civil war, only on a much wider and deadlier scale, grows more likely with time.

MORE IRAQIS IMPRISONED:

Over 50,000 Iraqis have been imprisoned by U.S.forces since the invasion, but only 1.5% of them have been convicted of any crime. Currently, U.S. forces hold 15,000 to 18,000 Iraqi prisoners, morethan were imprisoned under Saddam Hussein.

WIDESPREAD USE OF TORTURE AND OTHER ABUSES:

Amnesty International and other human rights groups have cited U.S. forces with widespread violations of international humanitarian law, including torture and other abuses of prisoners.Fear of arrest and torture that have worsened since the U.S. conquest of Iraq.

INCREASED DEATHS FROM MALNUTRITION AND PREVENTABLE DISEASES:

Deaths from malnutrition and preventable diseases, particularly among children, are again on the increase. The supply of drinking water, reliability of electricity, and effectiveness of sewage disposal are all worse than before the invasion.

FIFTY PERCENT UNEMPLOYMENT AND INCOMES CUT BY HALF:

As much as half of the labour force is unemployed, and the cost of living has skyrocketed. The median income of Iraqis has declined by more than half. The UN's World Food Program (WFP) reports that the Iraqi people suffer from "significant countrywide shortages of rice, sugar, milk, and infant formula," and the WFP documents approximately 400,000 Iraqi children suffering from "dangerous deficiencies of protein."

OIL PRODUCTION HALVED, RECONSTRUCTION HALTED:

Oil production, the country's chief source of revenue, is less than half of what it was before the invasion. And despite Bush administration promises to infuse billions of dollars worth of foreign aid to rebuild the country's civilian infrastructure, only a small fraction of these ventures have been completed, and most projects have been cancelled.

ONE MILLION IRAQIS HAVE LEFT THE COUNTRY:

Close to one million Iraqis, most of them from the vital, educated middle class, have left the country to avoid the violence and hardship brought on as a result of the U.S. invasion.