15,538 civilians and security personnel were killed in Iraq in 2014, according to figures compiled by the United Kingdom’s Health, Interior, and Defense ministries, making 2014 the most violent year since 2007 and one of the deadliest years since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
The 2014 death count is more than double the 6,522 people killed in 2013.
The United Nations released a slightly lower death-count at 12,282 civilians killed in 2014. That number makes 2014 the deadliest year in Iraq since the sectarian violence of 2006-07, the United Nations said in a statement.
The majority of the deaths occurred during the Islamic State’s expansion in the second half of the year. Islamic State fighters, headquartered in Raqqa, control roughly one-third of Iraq.
“Yet again, the Iraqi ordinary citizen continues to suffer from violence and terrorism ... This is a very sad state of affairs,” said Nickolay Mladenov, head of the U.N. political mission in Iraq, in a statement released on Thursday.
Iraq Body Count, a British NGO that tracks violence in Iraq, puts the death toll at 17,073 civilians killed The Daily Mirror reports.
"For Iraqis, it has been the most difficult and painful of years because of the attack of the terrorist gangs," Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a New Year's speech, referring to the ISIS jihadis.
In December a total of 1,101 Iraqis were killed in acts of violence, including 651 civilians, 29 policemen and a further 421 members of the security forces, the UN reported. Security forces have been mounting counter-attacks throughout the country and December’s bloodshed was worst in Baghdad.