Trump Administration Potentially “Covered Up” True American Death Toll During Middle East Conflicts

By Alvin H. Green IV 

Courtesy of Getty Images

There is evidence that, as of April 3, over 750 people have been wounded or died in Trump’s war with Iran. The military continues to offer outdated figures and vague details on death tolls as peace seems farther away than ever.

According to the U.S. Central Command or CENTCOM,  only seven American soldiers have been killed in Operation Epic Fury so far, with around 330 wounded or injured. However, these numbers are likely based on outdated data and have resulted in an undercount. In actuality, the numbers are closer to around fifteen dead and 530 wounded or injured since the conflict began in March. 

According to The Intercept, the Trump Administration has been very cagey in releasing casualty numbers and injury reports as they fail to meet their target objectives in Iran. More than 200 sailors were injured during a  fire aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford in March, and their numbers have been left off Pentagon and CENTCOM casualty reports completely. 

“The Pentagon is keeping journalists from accessing the casualty reports,” said First Year Criminal Justice major Brandon Brown. “They are violating a court order and unlawfully limiting press access. Someone needs to be tried for this, actually, a lot of someones need to be tried for this.”

Around 3,500 Iranians have been killed in Operation Epic Fury, according to The Guardian. If the 750 figure is to be believed, America has lost or severely injured three soldiers for every fourteen Iranians killed since the war began. At least 250 of the Iranian casualties were children.

It is also important to mention that Lebanon has suffered a staggering 1,530 casualties since the war began, with at least 129 being children, while not officially being an aggressor. According to Reuters, Iraq has also lost 117 civilian lives, while the United Arab Emirates has lost 12 civilians. Qatar and Kuwait have both lost seven lives, in a helicopter crash and through frontline fighting respectively.

“War in the Middle East solves nothing,” says James Everett, a second-year political science major from West Virginia. “Regime change doesn’t work, ‘special military operations’ only cost us lives, and if Trump is lying about the number of casualties, it’s one of the worst things he’s ever done to save face.” He went on to say that lying about the number of American Lives lost is “utterly disrespectful,” calling for a swift end to the US-Iranian War.

And as unfortunate as it is to say, this war will likely not end anytime soon. Even with the fragile two-week ceasefire called on Tuesday, Israel has continued to bomb Lebanon as recently as Thursday. Israel claims that their ceasefire with Iran does not count against the Iranian-backed paramilitary group Hezbollah, while Iran claims Israel is violating the ceasefire agreement. Several Israeli strikes not only hit known Hezbollah sites, but dense commercial areas during rush hour, according to the Associated Press. The strikes killed more than 200 people.

The United States, Israel, and Iran have also failed to reach a lasting peace agreement on Sunday after 21 hours of negotiating, even after Trump agreed to Iran’s ten-point deal framework, according to CNN. Trump is now calling for the Strait of Hormuz to be blockaded by the U.S. Navy.