Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. Report: Fewer Violent Civilians Deaths in Iraq This Year VOA News 30 December 2010 Iraqi security forces inspect the scene of a car bomb attack in Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, 12 Dec 2010 Photo: AP Iraqi security forces inspect the scene of a car bomb attack in Ramadi, 70 miles (115 kilometers) west of Baghdad, 12 Dec 2010 A [1]British-based group that has been tracking civilian casualties in Iraq [2]since the 2003 says this year's civilian death toll will be the lowest since the war began. [3]Iraq Body Count says it has recorded just under 4,000 (3,976) civilian deaths from violence this year, compared to nearly 4,700 (4,680) in 2009. The findings are in a preliminary report released Thursday that includes figures through December 25. However, the group says the rate of decline is smaller than in previous years. It also says the 2010 data suggests a "persistent low-level conflict in Iraq" that could kill civilians at a similar rate for years to come. Iraq Body Count describes Mosul as an "extraordinarily violent" city relative to its size, although it says Baghdad has the most violence, overall. The group also says large-scale bombings, killing more than 50 civilians, continue to have a "severe impact." It cites nine such incidents this year, compared to eight in 2009. In August, the U.S. formally ended its combat mission in Iraq. About 50,000 U.S. troops remain in the country, serving as a transitional force. U.S. President Barack Obama has set a goal of removing all U.S. troops by the end of 2011. On Wednesday, the U.S. formally transferred control of the Camp Bucca military installation to Iraq. The southern Iraq facility housed thousands of detainees. Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters. NEW: Follow our Middle East reports on [4]Twitter and discuss them on our [5]Facebook page. References 1. http://www.iraqbodycount.org/ 2. http://www.iraqbodycount.org/analysis/reference/press-releases/12/ 3. http://www.iraqbodycount.org/analysis/numbers/2010/ 4. http://twitter.com/VOAMidEast 5. http://www.facebook.com/pages/VOAMiddleEastVoices/124360240958667? v=wall .