Pentagon Reports 140 US Troops Wounded as Iran War Intensifies

About 140 American service members have been wounded since the United States launched major combat operations against Iran on Feb. 28, the Pentagon confirmed Tuesday, with eight troops severely injured and seven killed as the conflict enters what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth described as its most intense phase yet.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in an emailed statement that "the vast majority of these injuries have been minor, and 108 service members have already returned to duty." Eight remain severely injured. A separate Reuters estimate put the wounded figure as high as 150, though the Pentagon's direct statement stands as the authoritative official count.

Seven U.S. service members have died since fighting began. Six of them, identified as Amor, Khork, Coady, Marzan, O'Brien, and Tietjens, were killed in a drone strike on a command center in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, one day after the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury. A seventh service member, identified only as Pennington, was injured in an enemy attack at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia on March 1 and later died of his wounds.

Hegseth warned Tuesday that the day would be "yet again our most intense day of strikes inside Iran: The most fighters, the most bombers, the most strikes, intelligence more refined and better than ever." He also noted that the previous 24 hours had seen the fewest Iranian missiles fired since the war began, a signal Washington views as evidence that the sustained bombardment is degrading Iran's offensive capacity.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said U.S. forces have now struck more than 5,000 targets and are hitting deeper into Iran's military and industrial base. The scale of the campaign reflects a deliberate escalation since Trump announced the operations less than two weeks ago, saying the United States would pursue "ultimate victory that will end this long-running danger once and for all."

Iran has responded with missile and drone attacks on Israel, American bases across the region, and multiple Gulf nations, while also targeting energy infrastructure and shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, pushing oil prices sharply higher. Trump threatened on social media to attack Iran "TWENTY TIMES HARDER" if Tehran moved to cut off oil flows through the critical waterway.

The broader human cost is stark. At least 1,230 people have been killed inside Iran, along with at least 397 in Lebanon and 12 in Israel, according to officials. Iranian state television reported that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of strikes in Tehran. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was subsequently chosen to succeed him, according to ABC News, which cited Iranian state television's account.

Diplomatically, Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a call Monday with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, in which Rubio strongly condemned Iranian terrorist attacks and Iranian-backed militia activity in Iraq, including in the Kurdistan region. Both officials reiterated the importance of Baghdad protecting American diplomatic personnel and facilities.

North Korea's foreign ministry denounced the U.S. and Israeli military campaign, saying it "deserves worldwide criticism," while state media reported that Kim Jong Un supervised tests of nuclear-capable cruise missiles for the second time in two weeks.

The conflict, which Trump has called "a short-term excursion," shows no immediate signs of a ceiling on its intensity.