Army Guard now says its Iraq troops figure was inaccurate

[maddezmom]

The Army National Guard said Monday it had given USA TODAY an inaccurate count of the total number of Guard troops in Iraq (news - web sites) since the beginning of the war in March 2003, but still could not provide a precise count.


USA TODAY used the inaccurate Guard numbers to construct an analysis that showed part-time troops from the Army National Guard were more likely to die in Iraq than their counterparts in the active-duty Army.


Without more precise figures, there is no way to accurately compare death rates between various branches of U.S. military forces during the Iraq war.


The Guard said last week that 37,000 Guard troops had set foot in Iraq since the start of the war. On Monday, Guard spokesman Scott Woodham said 90,972 Guard troops had been ordered to Iraq, but he could not say how many had actually gotten there, and how many were in mobilization stations or on their way.

more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=676&ncid=716&e=23&u=/usatoday/20041214/ts_usatoday/armyguardnowsaysitsiraqtroopsfigurewasinaccurate