140 US troops wounded in Iran war, including 8 severely — Pentagon
General Dan Caine, chairman of US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Iran was fighting and deserved respect for that, but added that its forces did not appear more formidable than previously assessed.
About 140 US troops have been wounded in the Iran war, including 8 severely, the Pentagon says.
"Since the start of Operation Epic Fury, approximately 140 U.S. service members have been wounded over 10 days of sustained attacks," chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said on Tuesday.
Parnell said the eight seriously wounded service members were receiving the highest level of medical care.
Reuters could not determine the types of injuries and whether they include traumatic brain injuries, which are common after exposure to blasts.
Iran has launched retaliatory strikes against US military bases since the start of the conflict on February 28.
It has also struck diplomatic missions in Arab Gulf states as well as hotels, airports, and damaged oil infrastructure.
These figures offer the first glimpse of the wider toll among US troops following a barrage of retaliatory Iranian rocket and drone attacks that also killed seven soldiers in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
Asked if Iran was a stronger adversary than he expected when the US military drew up its war plans, General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters earlier on Tuesday that the fight was not harder than expected.
"I think they're fighting, and I respect that, but I don't think they are more formidable than what we thought," Caine told a Pentagon briefing.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday would be the most intense day yet of US strikes inside Iran as the Islamic Republic, its firepower diminished, vowed to fight on.
Unprecedented military consequences
Residents in Tehran say the capital has experienced some of the war’s heaviest air strikes, with powerful blasts shaking western neighbourhoods and widespread electricity outages reported.
One resident in western Tehran said the area shook for nearly half an hour as strikes hit around midnight.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf dismissed any suggestion of seeking a ceasefire, while another top Iranian security official, Ali Larijani, wrote on X that “Iran doesn’t fear your (Trump’s) empty threats.”
Meanwhile, Trump said on Tuesday that if Iran had placed any mines in the Strait of Hormuz, they should remove them immediately, adding that such a step would be a major move in the right direction.
The US President warned that if the mines were not cleared at once, Iran would face military consequences at a level never seen before.