Adnkronos (Adnkronos) – Twenty-two U.S. soldiers have reportedly died in the war against Iran, a number higher than the official toll released by the Pentagon. The Washington Post reports this, citing six U.S. officials familiar with the Defense Department's internal casualty counting data: five of them cite at least 22 military deaths, four more than the Pentagon's public database shows.
According to a sixth source, there are 23: not all of them are directly linked to the conflict, but they are still personnel present in the Middle East during the ongoing hostilities. The same official also reports the deaths of three US contractors based in the region.
The public Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) database currently reports 18 military casualties.
The casualty classification system fuels further ambiguity: 14 deaths were recorded under Operation Epic Fury, the name chosen by the Trump administration for the war against Iran, while four others appear in a separate category called Overseas Operations, referring to the period following the July ceasefire between Washington and Tehran, which then collapsed with the resumption of attacks.
Over the summer, when four combat deaths were temporarily removed from the database, the administration reclassified the resumption of hostilities as Overseas Operations rather than as part of Operation Epic Fury.
Among the cases not reflected in the database are Sergeant Devin Seibel, who died on May 31 in Irbil, Iraq, in a training accident as part of Operation Inherent Resolve against the Islamic State, and Major Sorffly Davius, who died on March 6 in Kuwait from an unspecified medical emergency while engaged in Operation Spartan Shield, the US newspaper reports, specifying that it is unclear whether his death was linked to an Iranian attack. The Pentagon confirmed that since February, two other service members have died in the Middle East on missions unrelated to the war against Iran, at bases hit by Iranian forces.
According to the DCAS database, the conflict has caused more than 820 injuries among US forces, many of them with head injuries following Iranian counterattacks against US bases in the region. According to a document reviewed by the Washington Post, the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which manages the offensives in Iran, estimated the cost of the war at approximately $43,6 billion as of early September, $28 billion of which was in munitions used, not including damage to US bases.
Several senior military officials have reportedly warned Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth that prolonging large-scale operations against Iran is unsustainable and risks weakening the ability to address other threats, including those to the nation's homeland, the newspaper reports. Politically, the war has become a challenge for President Donald Trump and the Republican Party ahead of the November midterm elections: according to a recent poll, only 28% of Americans approve of Trump's handling of the Iran crisis, compared to 62% who disapprove.
On Tuesday, a record seven Republican lawmakers voted alongside Democrats in the House to approve a largely symbolic measure aimed at halting the war, the latest of several war powers resolutions passed by Congress. Republican Representative Thomas Massie also initiated an effort to force a House vote on Hegseth's impeachment, accusing him of violating the 1973 War Powers Resolution by conducting hostilities without congressional authorization. For their part, Democratic senators have announced their intention to investigate the Pentagon's handling of casualty notifications if they regain the majority after the midterms in November.
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