Air Force adds two ‘nonhostile’ fatalities to Middle East tally since start of Iran war

The Air Force announced the deaths of two service members who died in the Middle East this month. Both of their deaths were classified as “nonhostile.”The service did not provide details about what happened, who died, and how, but an Air Force spokesperson confirmed to the Washington Examiner on Thursday that one of the deaths “remains under investigation,” and the other was “a non-hostile death as a result of an illness.”The Pentagon runs a database to track military casualties and fatalities during conflicts all over the globe called the Defense Casualty Analysis System. It states that 23 U.S. service members have been killed in the Middle East since the war against Iran began on Feb. 28, while 865 service members have been wounded. Eleven of the 23 fatalities are listed as “hostile,” while the other 12 are listed as “non-hostile.”Including the two recent Air Force deaths, there have been four “non-hostile” fatalities since the start of September. The last “hostile” fatalities occurred in July.Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Sarai Ramirez-Galvan took her own life on Sept. 14. The Navy did not release her identity for weeks after her death, but confirmed an investigation into her death. Capt. Bianca Wilkerson, an Army officer, experienced a medical emergency on Sept. 18 while flying to the Middle East and died.The Office of the Secretary of War often releases information about “hostile” deaths 24 hours after the family of the deceased is notified.The database often takes days for new updates to appear, and the war in Iran has been divided into two separate conflicts in the database — differentiated by the ill-fated memorandum of understanding — both of which have prompted concerns and criticism from some members of Congress.When pressed by the Washington Examiner in Wisconsin in late August about a previous increase in casualty numbers, Hegseth said, “I can tell you that databases play catch-up sometimes. We’ve been transparent about it the entire time.”President Donald Trump has publicly alluded to the possibility that he could authorize additional military action against Iran after next week’s midterm elections, though it’s unclear what the military would target in new operations and what the overall goals would be for such a plan.LATEST IRAN WAR ESTIMATES: $47 BILLION IN TOTAL COST, NEARLY $30 BILLION IN MUNITIONSShould he approve such an operation, the Iranians would presumably retaliate. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has fired thousands of drones and rockets at countries all over the region, including, but not limited to, U.S. bases. Pentagon officials are currently considering the long-term posture in the region as they plan how to rebuild damaged bases.The war has cost approximately $47 billion, the Pentagon informed Congress earlier this month.