‘[T]he right hon. Gentleman talked about the murder of innocent civilians in Iraq. That point is occasionally presented as if the civilians who have died and who are dying in Iraq are somehow dying as a result of coalition action. We are not killing civilians in Iraq, terrorists are killing civilians in Iraq’ Tony Blair (Hansard, 14 July, Column 1442)

Amara, 9 may

‘Residents of Amara said a British helicopter fired on houses in the city’s Sadeq district, killing four civilians and destroying several houses. British officials denied using helicopters in the area. “There were helicopters circling the area, then they started firing,” said Subeih Hassan, standing in front of his demolished house. His brother was killed in the British attack. Also killed in nearby houses were a baby, a man in his 60s and a fourth man, according to residents’ (Guardian, 10 May)

Mukaradeeb, 19 may

In the early hours of 19 May the US military attacked the tiny village of Mukaradeeb near the Syrian border. By the time the sun rose the raid had claimed 42 lives, all civilians. According to the doctor at al-Qaim hospital the dead included 11 women and 14 children (Guardian, 25 May)

The victims had been attending a wedding but when the bombing started at 3am the party was long over.