There have been nearly 400 US military casualties in Operation Epic Fury so far.
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Less than a week before Memorial Day weekend — a federal holiday that aims to recognize members of the U.S. military who have died in combat zones — President Donald Trump sought to downplay the U.S. casualties of his ill-defined and unauthorized war on Iran.
Speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday, Trump was asked about servicemembers’ deaths.
“We lost 13 people. … In other wars, you lost hundreds of thousands of people,” Trump said, seemingly complaining about any criticism of the war that involves discussing military deaths or casualties.
Trump further claimed that any president other than himself would have lost “a hundred thousand people” if tasked with the same military goals he’s had in Venezuela and Iran.
“I get a kick when I look at somebody on television, and they say, ‘he’s lost 13 people,’” Trump elaborated.
Trump: We lost 13 people. In other wars, you lost hundreds of thousands of people. I get a kick when I look at somebody on television and they say, ‘he’s lost 13 people.’ pic.twitter.com/0qGnvpCdTw
— FactPost (@factpostnews) May 20, 2026
Trump’s comments come as the war on Iran is soon to enter its fourth month. Almost one month ago, Trump announced an indefinite ceasefire with the country, a condition of the war he claims is continuing despite ongoing skirmishes. Blockades by both sides also continue within the Strait of Hormuz. Under international law, blockades are considered acts of war.
Trump’s diminishing of those who have died in the war so far ignores the larger official U.S. casualty count. While 13 servicemembers have died, another 381 have been injured, according to the most recent numbers from CENTCOM.
Casualty reports have been infrequent, however, and it’s possible the numbers may be much higher. Indeed, a Congressional Research Service report suggests the U.S. has had as many as 42 aerial vehicles damaged during the war, indicating that damage to American military bases and war resources is more serious than the White House is letting on, and that the Trump administration isn’t being forthright about the war in general.
Earlier this year, The Intercept also reported on a “cover-up” of U.S. military casualties across the Middle East, including the omission from its official count of soldiers known to have died in Operation Epic Fury.
The news organization noted that it’s “impossible to know how many other casualties have been kept under wraps,” citing past statements by Trump, including one instance where he pushed “a complete fiction to the public.”
That incident featured an Iranian missile attack on Al-Asad Air Base in Iraq in January 2020 — itself a response to the Trump-ordered assassination of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani. Trump had claimed that “No Americans were harmed” in that attack, and that the U.S. “suffered no casualties.” In fact, at least 110 U.S. troops suffered traumatic brain injuries, a condition Trump later downplayed as being just “headaches.”
Trump’s downplaying of U.S. casualties and deaths from the Iran War comes just ahead of Monday’s Memorial Day holiday. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs website, the holiday is “the nation’s foremost annual day to mourn and honor its deceased service men and women.”
In addition to the hundreds of casualties the U.S. has suffered, nearly 3,500 Iranians, mostly civilians, have been killed in the war, with at least another 26,500 injured.
Michael T. McPhearson, executive director for Veterans for Peace, excoriated Trump for his comments earlier in the week on troop deaths.
Trump’s “flippant attitude as he talks about the deaths is disgusting and disrespectful to the families and the service members’ sacrifices,” McPhearson said in comments to Truthout.
Describing the decision to attack Iran as a clear “war of choice,” McPhearson also said the public “is tired of the U.S.’s endless wars” in general.
“President Trump’s response and demeanor confirm what I’ve known for a long time: he is a self-centered president who cares nothing about military service members, their families, and the American people,” McPhearson added.
Public support for the war on Iran is incredibly low. An Economist/YouGov poll published on Tuesday found that only 30 percent of Americans support the war on Iran, with 60 percent saying they are opposed. On his handling of the war, 31 percent say they approve of how Trump has managed things, while 59 percent say they disapprove.
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