The Pentagon has officially updated its count of US service members killed in the war with Iran to 21, up from the previous figure of 18. The revision follows a Washington Post report last month which said the war had caused more US troop casualties than the Pentagon had publicly acknowledged.
The report cited six US officials familiar with the Defense Department’s internal casualty accounting data, who put the number at 22. That was four more than the figure listed in the Pentagon’s public database at the time.
The latest update to the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) includes two noncombat deaths: Army National Guard Maj. Sorffly Davius, who died in Kuwait in March, and an unidentified Navy suicide, The Washington Post reported.
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Hegseth Rejects Report
After the newspaper reported that the Pentagon was concealing the actual number of casualties, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denied the claim and called it “a complete LIE”. In a post on X, he wrote, “This is DISGUSTING and FAKE. A complete LIE.” He further criticised the newspaper, saying, “Shame on the Washington Post — they’re worse than Iranian state media.”
Munitions Shortfall Reported
Besides human casualties, the US is also facing a shortfall of munitions. In a report on September 14, the Defense Department’s inspector general said the conflict with Iran had led to a munitions shortfall and “bottlenecks” in supply chains, and that Washington is working to replenish weaponry.
“Pentagon is working to streamline procurement processes and production lead times, and to stockpile critical materials, components, and selected munitions to respond rapidly to a contingency,” the report said.