Iraq's deadliest month

[Jim Eshelman]

(8/13/2013)

A CNN article this morning, by Arwa Damon, reported that July 2013 was "Iraq's bloodiest month" in five years.

This past year has seen a marked increase in attacks, especially coordinated simultaneous attacks... July was the deadliest month in Iraq in the last five years since the peak of sectarian violence in 2006 and 2007. According to the U.N., 1,057 Iraqis were killed and another 2,326 were wounded in acts of terrorism and violence...

Then, last Saturday, timed with Eid, bombings spamming the country "claimed dozens of lives and wounded nearly two hundred more."

Starting with the characterization of July as the "deadliest month... in the last five years," what do the ingresses show?

It's pretty simple: The June 25 Caplunar for Baghdad has Saturn 1° from exact square to the Midheaven. The July 9 Canlunar had Mars 1° above the Ascendant. Even the new Caplunar on July 22 had Saturn as its most angular (only foreground) planet, even though it was almost 5° above the Ascendant.

Deadly. Bloody. And Deadly.

[Jim Eshelman]

As for last Saturday (August 10), was there anything unique about that day other than the arrival of an annual holiday concluding Ramadan?

Well, Iraq's year was indeed set up to be bloody, with Saturn rising and Mars on the IC in the Capsolar. They are 3°26' and 5°11', respectively, from the angles, forming a mundane square less than 2°. Saturn has been transiting the Capsolar Midheaven and, last Saturday, was still within 1°.

In the days leading up to last weekend, Mars transited the Cansolar MC for Baghdad, and, which was surely in a planning phase, but it was cleared of the angle by Saturday. And then Saturday brought the Cansolar Quotidian Ascendant to 9° Libra where it conjoined both Cansolar and transiting Saturns.

Yes... there was a thing or two in these charts.