Iran Claims More Than 200 US Troops Killed in 15-Day Conflict

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed that more than 200 US military personnel were killed during a 15-day conflict between the two countries, sharply disputing figures released by the Pentagon.

In an interview with Tasnim News Agency, IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohebbi said the scale of US casualties and damage was far greater than Washington had acknowledged. He alleged that the Pentagon was withholding the full extent of the losses suffered during what Iran has described as “Operation Victory-2”, its retaliatory military campaign.

Mohebbi urged journalists to visit US military facilities that Iran says were targeted by its missile strikes. According to him, allowing independent media access to the affected bases would help establish the extent of the destruction and provide a clearer picture of the military losses claimed by Tehran.

The IRGC has also released a series of claims about US military equipment allegedly destroyed during the operation. It said strikes were carried out against eight US military bases and claimed that the attacks destroyed 11 US fighter aircraft and helicopters, 17 intelligence and operational drones, one F-15 fighter jet, one P-8 maritime patrol aircraft, one C-17 transport aircraft and eight aerial refuelling aircraft.

The claims, if independently confirmed, would represent a significant level of military damage. However, no independent evidence has so far been presented publicly to substantiate the full list of equipment losses or the number of US personnel allegedly killed.

The Pentagon had initially reported that 18 US service members were killed in the conflict, before subsequently revising the figure down to 14. The discrepancy has added to the competing narratives surrounding casualties and battlefield losses, with Tehran challenging Washington’s official account and the United States yet to publicly respond to the IRGC’s latest allegations.

The conflicting figures come amid heightened tensions over military operations and the exchange of attacks between Iran and the United States. In such circumstances, casualty figures and claims of destroyed military assets can become a major part of the information battle surrounding a conflict, particularly when access to affected areas is restricted.

The United States has not yet commented on the IRGC’s claim that more than 200 American troops were killed. Independent verification of the Iranian figures remains unavailable. Reuters was also unable to independently verify either the casualty figures cited by Iran or its claims regarding the destruction of US military equipment.

As a result, the competing casualty estimates remain unverified, and the true scale of US military losses in the 15-day conflict cannot be established from the available information.