At least 22 US service members have died in the Middle East since the Trump administration launched military operations against Iran in February, according to five US officials familiar with the Pentagon’s internal casualty records, a figure that is higher than the number publicly reported by the Defense Department.
A sixth US official put the death toll at 23, saying some of the additional fatalities were not directly linked to combat but involved American personnel serving in the Middle East while hostilities were ongoing.
The officials, who spoke anonymously because they were discussing internal military data, said the higher casualty figure includes deaths that have not been reflected in the Pentagon’s public Defense Casualty Analysis System, known as DCAS.
As of Friday, the database listed 18 US military fatalities involving both hostile and non-hostile deaths dating back to the beginning of the Iran conflict.
The sixth official also said three US contractors based in the region had died since combat operations began.
The circumstances surrounding the additional military deaths remain unclear. The identities of the service members, as well as the dates, locations and causes of their deaths, have not been established publicly.
Officials familiar with the figures expressed frustration that the additional deaths were absent from the Pentagon’s public casualty records.
The Pentagon declined to respond to questions about the discrepancy.
The reported difference in casualty figures has raised fresh questions about the way the Trump administration is recording military deaths during the conflict.
The Iran war began on February 28, when the Trump administration, working with Israel, launched military action against Iran. The conflict has since resulted in hundreds of American service members being wounded, with the Pentagon’s public database recording more than 820 personnel injured in action.
Many of the injuries have involved traumatic brain injuries following Iranian attacks on US military bases across the Middle East.
According to the DCAS database, 14 of the reported deaths occurred during Operation Epic Fury, the administration’s name for the Iran war. Four other fatalities are listed under a separate category, Overseas Operations, and relate to the period following a July ceasefire between Washington and Tehran that later collapsed.
The Pentagon has separately acknowledged that two US service members died in the Middle East while carrying out missions unrelated to the Iran war. Both deaths occurred at bases that had been attacked by Iranian forces, but their names do not appear in the relevant DCAS listings.
Sgt. Devin Seibel, for instance, died in a training accident in Irbil, Iraq, on May 31, according to a Defense Department announcement. He had been assigned to Operation Inherent Resolve, the US military campaign against Islamic State militants, but his name does not appear in the operation’s casualty figures on DCAS.
Maj. Sorffly Davius died in Kuwait on March 6 after suffering an unspecified medical emergency. His death was announced by the Defense Department, which said he had been deployed under Operation Spartan Shield, a mission involving partnerships with military forces in the region. It remains unclear whether his death was connected to an Iranian attack.
The accurate recording of military deaths has consequences beyond public accountability. Every time a US service member dies, the military carries out a line-of-duty investigation to determine whether the death occurred while the individual was performing official duties.
The findings can influence the survivor benefits available to the deceased service member’s family.
The controversy over the casualty figures follows an earlier incident in which the names of four US troops who died during the Iran war were temporarily missing from the Pentagon’s official tally.
During the summer, the administration reclassified renewed hostilities with Iran as Overseas Operations rather than associating the deaths with Operation Epic Fury. The change occurred while US negotiators were attempting to secure a lasting agreement with Tehran.
The casualty reporting issue has become particularly sensitive as the war faces political opposition in the United States. A September Reuters-Ipsos poll cited in the report found that 28 per cent of Americans supported Trump’s approach to Iran, while 62 per cent disapproved.
The conflict has also placed pressure on US military resources, including stocks of precision weapons, while attacks have damaged American bases across the Persian Gulf.
Global energy markets have also been affected after Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz, a major route for the transportation of oil and fertiliser.
A document reviewed by The Washington Post estimated that the war had cost the US military about $43.6bn through early September. The figure included approximately $28bn in ammunition and other munitions used during the conflict but excluded damage to American military bases.
Senior US military officials have also warned Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth that maintaining large-scale operations against Iran for an extended period could become unsustainable and reduce the military’s ability to respond to threats elsewhere, including within the United States.
Congress has also seen renewed efforts to challenge the administration’s handling of the war. On Tuesday, seven Republican lawmakers joined Democrats in supporting a largely symbolic measure aimed at ending the conflict.
All US military deaths and injuries are expected to be recorded through the Pentagon’s DCAS system, which serves as the department’s public record of casualties from military operations.
Democrats have pledged to investigate the Pentagon’s casualty reporting if they regain control of the Senate after the midterm elections.
In the House, Reps. Pat Ryan, Jason Crow and 10 other Democratic lawmakers, all military veterans, said on Friday that they were pursuing legislation aimed at preventing the Pentagon from altering government casualty data.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth and 17 other Democratic senators introduced a similar bill in the Senate last month.
Meanwhile, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie has moved to force a House vote on impeaching Hegseth over the war, alleging that the Defense Secretary violated the War Powers Resolution of 1973 by continuing hostilities without congressional authorisation.
