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US Troops have suffered nearly 100 injuries since 7 July, the Pentagon has confirmed, as military operations between the United States and Iran continue to escalate across the Middle East.
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said almost 100 American service members sustained injuries following multiple Iranian attacks on US military facilities in the region.
In a statement posted on X and shared with CBS News, Parnell said 96% of the injured personnel have already returned to active duty. He added that most suffered minor concussions.
“They are determined to get back in the fight,” Parnell wrote.
Parnell rejected allegations that the Pentagon concealed information about troop casualties.
His comments came after The New York Times reported that the Pentagon withheld details of dozens of injuries suffered by US forces during the conflict with Iran.
Parnell accused the newspaper of publishing false claims and insisted the Defence Department had not hidden casualty figures.
The New York Times defended its reporting. Spokesperson Danielle Rhoades Ha said the newspaper relied on information from several US officials familiar with operational matters. She said the report found that the Pentagon did not publicly disclose several Iranian attacks, the resulting casualties or the damage caused to US military facilities.
CNN also reported that the military delayed announcing some troop injuries because officials wanted to protect affected service members.
According to The New York Times, Iran launched three separate attacks on US forces in Jordan during the week before a larger strike that killed two American soldiers and left another missing.
US officials told the newspaper those earlier attacks injured dozens of troops and damaged several military helicopters.
The report said the Pentagon did not publicly announce those attacks or reveal the extent of the casualties and damage.
Although US Central Command (CENTCOM) said recent retaliatory strikes targeted Iranian military assets linked to attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, it did not mention earlier Iranian attacks on US military bases in Jordan or elsewhere in the region.
The latest escalation follows the collapse of a month-long ceasefire between Washington and Tehran.
The United States has carried out nightly airstrikes against Iranian military targets for more than a week, saying the campaign aims to prevent attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has responded by launching missile and drone attacks against US military facilities in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and other countries hosting American forces.
The exchange of attacks has continued despite a Pakistani-brokered framework agreement signed in June that sought to reduce tensions and support a lasting peace process.
The Pentagon confirmed the deaths of First Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Texas after Iranian attacks on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.
Officials said Gonzales died on Friday, while Feehan died on Saturday.
Feehan served with the 32nd Army Air Missile Defense Command at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Gonzales served with the 10th Army Air Missile Defense Command in Ansbach, Germany. Both worked in air defence artillery units.
The Pentagon also confirmed that another US service member died in northern Iraq during the controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance recovered from a downed Iranian attack drone.
Officials have not released that service member’s identity.
Another American soldier remains missing after the Iranian missile strike in Jordan. A US official said recovered remains are believed to belong to the missing soldier, although authorities have not completed formal identification.
According to Pentagon figures cited in the report, the deaths in Jordan and Iraq raise the number of US military personnel killed since 28 February to 17.
President Donald Trump vowed to respond forcefully to the deaths of American troops.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote:
“Every time Iran kills an American Soldier they will pay for that killing many times over!”
The White House also confirmed that Trump will attend the dignified transfer ceremony for the fallen service members.
The Pentagon’s latest figures highlight the growing human cost of the conflict as US airstrikes and Iranian retaliatory attacks continue across the Middle East, raising concerns that the fighting could expand further.
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