Senator Tammy Duckworth pushes bill to force Pentagon to disclose Iran war casualties

Former military officers and Democratic lawmakers say the Pentagon has removed recent U.S. troop deaths and injuries from its internal casualty tracking system and re‑classified them under a broader category, making it difficult to count the human cost of the war with Iran. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D‑IL) announced she will introduce the Honoring the Sacrifice of Troops in War Act, which would require the Department of Defense to restore all casualty records for Iran‑related operations from Feb. 28 to the “Operation Epic Fury” period and ensure transparent accounting for benefits and awards.

Duckworth, a Purple Heart veteran, told reporters, “Secretary Hegseth cannot erase the true cost of this war, and he cannot erase the sacrifices of our heroes by changing the paperwork.” The legislation is unlikely to pass in the Republican‑controlled Senate, but it aims to hold Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accountable and guarantee that service members receive the benefits they earned.

The Pentagon has dismissed the allegations as “baseless and malicious,” while critics argue the re‑classification obscures the true human toll of the conflict and hampers benefits for injured personnel.