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The Pentagon has reclassified four soldiers killed in July in Jordan and Iraq as "Overseas Operations Casualties," listing them separately from the 14 other casualties of Operation Epic Fury on its website. The move follows a period of confusion over casualty data, with discrepancies in the numbers of wounded service members and accusations that the military underreported injuries.

Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell attributed the earlier absence of the soldiers from the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) website to "a temporary data disruption," while also dismissing a New York Times report on the matter as a "completely fake story."

Coverage Comparison

The Jerusalem Post has reported extensively on the controversy, covering both the initial discrepancies and the Pentagon's subsequent explanations. In a July 21 report, the paper noted that nearly 100 US service members had been wounded since the renewal of US-Iran hostilities, with the vast majority suffering minor concussions and about 96% having returned to duty. Parnell, in statements posted on social media, emphasized that those wounded were determined to "get back in the fight."

The Pentagon's website at that time showed 14 troops dead and 427 injured since the beginning of the war on February 28. However, The Washington Post reported that the statistics were briefly updated on Monday night to reflect the total number of killed and wounded, but reverted to pre-July numbers after a few hours.

In a follow-up report on July 27, the Jerusalem Post confirmed that the four soldiers—including Private Isabella Gonzales, 19, and Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, who were killed during an Iranian strike in Jordan—remained absent from the website's lists of casualties and wounded, despite the site having been updated on July 20. The paper also noted that the numbers of wounded showed discrepancies, with 482 listed as wounded during the war with Iran and 417 listed as wounded in "Overseas Operations."

Key Claims

  • Four soldiers killed in Jordan and Iraq in July were designated "Overseas Operations Casualties," listed separately from the 14 additional Epic Fury casualties that occurred since February 28.
  • The Pentagon's website listed 14 additional Epic Fury casualties since February 28.
  • The numbers of wounded US soldiers showed discrepancies, with 482 listed as wounded during the war with Iran and 417 listed as wounded in "Overseas Operations."
  • Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell blamed the soldiers' absence on "a temporary data disruption" in a Thursday post on X/Twitter, stating that "site anomalies are currently being resolved in coordination with the Military Services."
  • Parnell accused the New York Times of "colluding" with anonymous sources to "push a completely fake story."
  • Nearly 100 US service members were wounded since the renewal of US-Iran hostilities.
  • 96% of those wounded have returned to duty.
  • Pentagon Spokesperson Sean Parnell stated that updates regarding wounded and killed soldiers would be posted to the Pentagon's online database, which currently shows 14 dead and 427 injured since the beginning of the war on February 28.
  • Parnell denied the New York Times report alleging wounded servicemembers went unreported.

Perspectives

The Pentagon, through Spokesman Sean Parnell, maintains that the discrepancies were due to temporary data disruptions and that the department is working to resolve them. Parnell has also pushed back against media reports, accusing the New York Times of colluding with anonymous sources to spread false information.

The New York Times, in its reporting, has alleged that the Pentagon reduced the number of soldiers confirmed killed during the war, removing four from the website, and that wounded servicemembers went unreported. The Times' report has not been confirmed by the Jerusalem Post, which noted it could not confirm the status on CENTCOM's site.