The Pentagon did not publicly reveal that dozens of American service members were injured during a series of Iranian attacks in Jordan before a later strike killed two U.S. soldiers, according to a report published Monday by The New York Times.
The report states that Iran carried out three separate attacks against U.S. forces in Jordan during the week leading up to Friday’s deadly assault. Those earlier strikes reportedly injured dozens of American troops and damaged several military helicopters.
According to The New York Times, multiple U.S. officials speaking anonymously said the Pentagon never publicly acknowledged those incidents.
The report also said U.S. Central Command has significantly reduced the amount of public information it has released regarding the ongoing conflict.
According to the newspaper, Central Command has not conducted a major public briefing on the war since early May. The report further stated that military officials have stopped providing regular updates on the number of Iranian targets struck and are no longer releasing cumulative figures on the number of American personnel wounded during the conflict.
One U.S. military official told The New York Times that Central Command is not obligated to publicly disclose information regarding injured service members, particularly in cases where those troops quickly recover and return to duty.
Another official told the newspaper that withholding details about attacks serves an operational purpose. According to the report, the official argued that publicly discussing specific attacks could provide Iran with information that might improve the accuracy of future ballistic missile and drone strikes targeting U.S. military installations throughout the Middle East.
The Times contrasted the current approach with previous administrations, noting that while officials have historically delayed identifying wounded service members until their families were notified, they generally released overall casualty totals after attacks involving American forces.
The report comes after Friday’s deadly attack in Jordan, which claimed the lives of two U.S. Army soldiers. Another American service member was also killed in northern Iraq.
According to the report, those deaths bring the total number of U.S. military personnel killed since the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28 to 17.
Following Friday’s attack, U.S. Central Command released a statement addressing the casualties.
The military said four wounded American service members received treatment at hospitals in Jordan before being discharged.
Central Command also acknowledged that additional troops suffered what it described as minor injuries but said those personnel had already returned to duty. The statement did not provide an overall number of wounded service members.
The New York Times reported that the earlier attacks during the previous week had resulted in injuries to dozens of American troops and damage to several helicopters, but those incidents were not publicly disclosed at the time.
According to the newspaper, the absence of regular briefings and detailed casualty updates represents a shift in how information about the conflict has been shared with the public.
The report cited anonymous U.S. officials offering differing explanations for the limited public disclosures. One pointed to the military’s discretion regarding reporting injuries, while another argued that releasing operational details could potentially benefit Iran by providing information useful for planning future attacks.
The Pentagon has not publicly acknowledged the earlier strikes described in the report. As of Monday, the public information released by Central Command regarding Friday’s attack consisted of confirmation that four wounded service members were treated and released from hospitals in Jordan, while additional troops sustained minor injuries and returned to duty.
