The Pentagon’s website now reports a lower number of U.S. troop deaths from the ongoing war in Iran, reducing the official tally from 18 to 14 in recent days. The change appeared on the Defense Department’s public casualty database on Thursday (July 24), after previously listing 18 service member deaths earlier in the week.

According to three military officials cited by The New York Times and reported by The Independent, the revision was made because President Donald Trump’s administration decided to remove four service members who died over the past weekend—three in Jordan and one in Iraq—from the official count. These deaths, officials explained, occurred after President Trump declared a cease-fire in April and were therefore not included as wartime fatalities.

Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell, however, attributed the change to "temporary data disruptions" and "site anomalies," dismissing suggestions of intentional underreporting as "one of the worst instances of the Fake News media manufacturing lies out of thin air," in a statement on X. Acting Pentagon press secretary Joel Valdez reiterated that the department is committed to "ensuring the utmost accuracy of all casualty reporting" and described the issue as a non-story, according to The Seattle Times.

Despite the official website showing 14 deaths, President Trump has continued to reference the higher figure of 18 in public remarks. At a transfer ceremony in Delaware, he said, "Even one death is too many, but it's 18," and repeated that the fallen troops supported the campaign to stop Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

The Pentagon has faced criticism over transparency, as limited information about recent military operations and injuries has been released since the cease-fire collapsed. Officials confirm that nearly 100 American troops have been wounded since July 7, but federal law does not require the Pentagon to disclose battlefield injuries, only deaths.

While the Defense Department says these reporting errors are being corrected, some critics—including retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges—have questioned the administration’s openness in sharing war information with the public. As the war and its reporting continue, the Pentagon states it is working to ensure accurate casualty data for the American people.

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