Pentagon updates war casualty figures, adds 140 wounded and restores four fallen soldiers
The Defense Department revised its casualty database, adding more than 140 wounded personnel and reinstating four soldiers killed in recent Iranian strikes, bringing total U.S. war losses since February 28 to 18 dead and 624 injured.
The Pentagon revised its Defense Casualty Analysis System on Saturday, adding over 140 newly wounded service members and restoring the names of four soldiers killed in Iranian attacks last weekend. The update also introduced a new tracking category, "Overseas Operations," for casualties recorded from July 7 onward. Combined with the latest figures for Operation Epic Fury, the United States now reports 18 fatalities and 624 wounded since the conflict began on Feb. 28, up from the previous peak of 482 injured reported last week.
The changes follow criticism from media and lawmakers after earlier casualty totals had unexpectedly dropped. Twelve Democratic senators on the Senate Armed Services Committee sent a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth requesting an explanation for the fluctuations. Acting Defense Department press secretary Joel Valdez said a Thursday social-media post that the declines were caused by "temporary data disruptions on the (DCAS) website." CNN observed minute-by-minute glitches on the DCAS site that produced varying totals.
When asked for further details about the data interruption, the Pentagon had not responded as of Sunday. The new "overseas operation" category does not specify the conflict involved, though it lists by name the three Army soldiers killed in Jordan and the service member killed in northern Iraq during a controlled detonation of an Iranian drone.
The July 7 start date aligns with President Donald Trump's War Powers notification to Congress, which the administration argues resets the statutory clock after a ceasefire in May. Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have questioned that interpretation, and some officials have described the War Powers Act as an unconstitutional limit on presidential war-making authority. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the law "unconstitutional, 100 percent" in a May briefing, and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski expressed concern that the administration was bypassing congressional approval.