The US is still hiding casualty figures from its failing Iran war. The Pentagon is ‘cooking the books’ on the number of soldiers killed and wounded by using outdated reporting to keep the public in the dark. The Intercept’s Nick Turse reported on 1 April:

Almost 750 U.S. troops have been wounded or killed in the Middle East since October 2023, an analysis by The Intercept has found. But the Pentagon won’t acknowledge it.

Adding:

U.S. Central Command, or CENTCOM, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, appears to be engaged in what a defense official called a “casualty cover-up,” offering The Intercept low-ball and outdated figures and failing to provide clarifications on military deaths and injuries.

15 troops were wounded in a attack on a Saudi air base on 27 March alone, according to two government officials who spoke with The Intercept.

Turse said:

Hundreds of U.S. personnel have been killed or injured in the region since the U.S. launched a war on Iran just over a month ago.

US — Outdated figures

The Intercept said Central Command (CENTCOM) was using “outdated” figures:

resulting in undercounts, including a statement sent Monday from spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins noting that “Since the start of Operation Epic Fury, approximately 303 U.S. service members have been wounded.”

The US outlet said:

The comment was three days old and excluded at least 15 wounded in the Friday attack on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. The command did not reply to repeated requests for updated figures

They added:

CENTCOM also would not provide a count of troops who have died in the region since the start of the war. An Intercept analysis puts the number at no less than 15.

An unnamed defence official told the Intercept:

This is, quite obviously, a subject that [War Secretary Pete] Hegseth and the White House want to keep under major wraps.

The Trump approach starkly contrasts with the last US administration, run by then-president Joe Biden. That government sent the Intercept:

detailed chronologies of attacks on U.S. bases in the Middle East that listed the specific outpost that was attacked, the type of strike, and whether — or how many — casualties resulted, along with an aggregate count of attacks by country.

Trump and Pete Hegseth’s department of war clearly have something to hide. This is likely exacerbated by the sense the US is losing — or has already lost — a war of choice with Iran.

US-Israel attacked Iran first on 28 February without provocation. Iran was offeringunprecedented concessions in negotiations at the time. The Pentagon has sincestated there was no imminent threat from Iran. And the UN’s atomic watchdog, the IAEA, has said there isno evidence Iran was developing a nuclear weapon.

The US has achieved none of its original war aims. Iran predictably closed the Straits of Hormuz, a vital oil channel, once attacked – creating a global energy crisis. Far from being defeated, Iran has said the war will continue until “the enemy’s inevitable and permanent humiliation, disgrace, regret, and surrender”. Trump came to power on an anti-war ‘America First’ ticket.

The US and Trump now face worldwide humiliation.

Featured image via the Cradle

By Joe Glenton

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