8,000 Have Deserted from Iraq War

The USA Today has a story on soldiers who have 'voted with their feet' and left the service illegaly.

Since fall 2003, 4,387 Army soldiers, 3,454 Navy sailors and 82 Air Force personnel have deserted. The Marine Corps does not track the number of desertions each year but listed 1,455 Marines in desertion status last September, the end of fiscal 2005, says Capt. Jay Delarosa, a Marine Corps spokesman.

Granted, only one of those desertions was of a soldier activly serving in Iraq, but it's not the kind of news that the Pentagon wants getting out. And it's really only news because the war is becoming unpopular. Nobody noticed when 8,000 soldiers, sailors, and marines deserted in 2001.

Desertion War in Iraq US Military