US military injuries doubled in recent resistance operations: NBC

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: NBC news
6 Nov 2023 22:08
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Officials have now noted a rise in reports of potential traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) stemming from those incidents.

The al-Tanf military outpost in southern Syria is seen on Oct. 22, 2018 (AP)

US DoD officials told NBC News on Monday that the number of injuries to US military service members in recent operations led by the resistance in Iraq on US occupation bases in Iraq and Syria is now reported to be at least 45, which is twice the figure previously disclosed by the Pentagon.

The report indicates that around two dozen service members have sustained traumatic brain injuries (TBI) resulting from the resistance's operations.

The Pentagon had initially reported that only 21 service members sustained minor injuries during the attacks on US troops at al-Tanf in Syria and the al-Asad air base in Iraq in late October. However, US officials have now noted a rise in reports of potential TBI's stemming from those incidents, according to the report.

On October 25, Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder informed reporters that there had been 13 attacks targeting US occupation forces in the Middle East in the past week, with 10 of them occurring in Iraq and three in Syria.

Two Republicans and one Democrat from the House of Representatives, namely Morgan Luttrell, Bill Johnson, and Ruben Gallego, have jointly sent a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin inquiring about the measures taken by the Pentagon to safeguard service members from TBI's.

"The Department must proactively work to reduce the risk to service members both to protect our men and women in uniform and to preserve the capability and readiness of forward operating bases," they wrote in a letter quoted by NBC News.

According to the Pentagon, there are approximately 2,500 US troops stationed in Iraq and another 900 in Syria.