Major battles are taking place in Baiji and driving up the number of casualties. At least 345 people were reported killed, mostly in Baiji. Another 48 were wounded. Executions by militants took place in several cities.

At least 220 people were killed, mostly in airstrikes and battles, and another 63 were wounded. Meanwhile, U.S. President Barack Obama said today that he will ask Congress for specific authority to conduct a military campaign against the Islamic State militants.

Hundreds of thousands of Shi’ite pilgrims were in Karbala today for the culmination of Ashura observances. No major attack against them occurred despite the presence of Islamic State militants in Iraq. Some attacks did occur elsewhere, among the battles. At least 141 people were killed and 69 more were wounded.

At least 174 were killed in Iraq, mostly militants. Another 26 were wounded. Meanwhile, Kurdish authorities said they paid unidentified intermediaries $1.5 million to facilitate the release or escape of 234 Yazidi captives.

Thousands of Shi’ite pilgrims are making their way, often on foot, to Karbala for Ashura observances, the first with Islamic State militants controlling large swathes of Iraq. Although the holiday peaks on Tuesday, bombers have already struck. At least 197 were killed and 104 more were wounded on Sunday.

October closed with a significantly higher number of casualties than did September. At least 6,715 people were killed across Iraq, and another 2,805 were wounded. Due to the nature of the conflict zone, these figures are only rough estimates. Two U.S. servicemembers were also killed during the month, from non-combat causes. Antiwar’s analysis is below. On Saturday, at least 205 were killed and 104 more were wounded.

Because Iraqis like to shop on the weekly prayer day, Fridays are an opportune time for bombers to attack markets, particularly pet shops. Today was no exception. Also, there were more reports of executions of Albu Nimr tribe members in western Iraq; however, only a few militant deaths were reported. At least 115 people were killed and 59 more were wounded.

At least 470 people were killed across Iraq today and in recent days. At least two significant mass graves were discovered in Anbar province. Also, Human Right Watch believes that 600 prisoners were killed near Mosul in June. Another 18 people were wounded.

Across Iraq on Wednesday at least 350 people were killed. Most of them were Islamic State militants, but the militants also executed several dozen men in Anbar province. At least 67 were wounded in bombings and shelling.

At least 160 people were killed. All of them except for two civilians were militants. Eighteen militants were also wounded.