A report by the U.S. Defense Department estimates about 26,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed or wounded in attacks by insurgents since January last year.
The Pentagon provided the estimate in a report to Congress this month.
It says about 80 percent of all insurgent attacks were directed at coalition forces, but that the majority of all casualties, 80 percent, are among Iraqi civilians.
Further, the Pentagon says the number of Iraqi casualties has risen, from about 26 a day between the months of January and March 2004, to about 64 a day in the period between August 29 of this year and September 16.
Violence continued Saturday, when at least 25 people died following a bomb explosion in a Shi'ite village north of Baghdad.
Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.
