OBJECTIVE To study the infant mortality rate (IMR) trend during wars and sanction periods in Western Iraq. METHODS Data collected from the birth and death certificates of Haditha Health Vital Statistics Center, Haditha city (80,000 population), Western Iraq, included name, age, gender, residence, and infant's place and date of births and deaths, in 5 different sanction and war stages of the c...

Leishmaniasis is endemic in 88 countries throughout Africa, Asia, Europe and North and South America (Dedet et al., 2003). There are an estimated 12 million cases worldwide and there are about 1.5 million new cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) each year of which over 90% occur in Afghanistan, Algeria, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Brazil and Peru (Ashford et al., 1992). Old World disease ...

BACKGROUND An excess mortality of nearly 100 000 deaths was reported in Iraq for the period March, 2003-September, 2004, attributed to the invasion of Iraq. Our aim was to update this estimate. METHODS Between May and July, 2006, we did a national cross-sectional cluster sample survey of mortality in Iraq. 50 clusters were randomly selected from 16 Governorates, with every cluster consisting ...

BACKGROUND The recent events in Iraq following the 2003 war render Iraq as a country with a high level of all types of violence. Exposure to violence, as a witness or a victim, is related to a number of longer term emotional, behavioral and social problems. OBJECTIVES To investigate the impact of witnessing and experiencing community violence and tragedy as a factor contributing to mental hea...

Britain has a relatively good track record in counterinsurgency (COIN).1 But as one journalist commented in 2008: “the war in Iraq has been one of the most disastrous wars ever fought by Britain. It has been small, but we achieved nothing.”2 Although this view can be contested, it is clear that, if judged in terms of the original aim, Britain’s achievements fell far short of expectations set in...

BACKGROUND Many adult cigarette smokers initiated the habit as adolescents. Adolescent tobacco use may be a marker of other unhealthy behaviours. There are limited data on the prevalence and correlates of cigarette smoking among in-school adolescents in Iraq. We aimed to estimate the prevalence of, and assess the socio-demographic correlates of current cigarette smoking among in-school adolesce...

This paper considers the ways in which Iraq‘s territorial integrity has been invoked by the international community, how it has been violated by the US-led coalition both before and since 2003, and how these acts have called into question the future viability of the Iraqi state. The specific focus is on the first four years of the occupation. The paper contends that Iraq provides an instructive...

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been the longest sustained U.S. military operations since the Vietnam era, sending more than 2.2 million troops into battle, and resulting in more than 6,600 deaths and 48,000 injuries. Many service members returning from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan are relatively unscathed. Upon return, the vast majority report that their experiences were rewardi...

Kurds from Iraq (Dohuk and Erbil Area, North Iraq) have been analyzed for HLA genes. Their HLA genetic profile has been compared with that of other Kurd groups from Iran and Tbilisi (Georgia, Caucasus) and also Worldwide populations. A total of 7,746 HLA chromosomes have been used. Genetic distances, NJ dendrograms and correspondence analyses have been carried out. Haplotype HLA-B*52-DRB1*15 is...

The objective of the present research was to develop and evaluate a critical warzone experiences (CWE) scale for use with Iraq/Afghanistan veterans. The psychometric properties of the CWE were evaluated across three independent samples of Iraq/Afghanistan veterans. Despite its brevity (7 items), the CWE exhibited good internal consistency (average α =0.83), good temporal stability (1-year test-...