Pentagon reclassifies four Iran war deaths under new 'Overseas Operations' category

· Conflict USAIRN

The Pentagon has reassigned four US service members killed in July to a new "Overseas Operations" tracking category, after the administration removed them from the official Iran war death toll last week. The Defense Department now lists 14 deaths under Operation Epic Fury and four under Overseas Operations, which tracks casualties from July 7 onward.

The four soldiers identified are 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad and Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton. Three died in Iranian missile strikes on a base in Jordan on July 17, and one was killed during a controlled detonation of an Iranian drone in Iraq. The administration justifies the separate casualty counts under its interpretation of the 1973 War Powers Act.

At least 624 US military personnel have been wounded since strikes against Iran began in February, with 417 attributed to Operation Epic Fury and 207 to Overseas Operations. The Pentagon simultaneously added more than 140 wounded soldiers to its database. A pause in US attacks on Iranian military infrastructure has held since Friday, following 13 consecutive nights of strikes since mid-July.

Story development

  1. Pentagon reclassifies four Iran war deaths under new 'Overseas Operations' category
  2. Pentagon creates new 'Overseas Operations' casualty category for four troops killed after Iran fighting resumed
  3. Pentagon removes four recent Iran war deaths from official casualty list

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