The military revealed that 11 service members were injured during an Iranian missile attack on an Iraqi military base where American forces are stationed.
A statement released by the U.S Central Command on Thursday said that no soldiers were killed, but 11 were treated for “concussion symptoms.”
“While no U.S. service members were killed in the Jan. 8 Iranian attack on Al Asad Air base, several were treated for concussion symptoms from the blast and are still being assessed. As a standard procedure, all personnel in the vicinity of a blast are screened for traumatic brain injury, and if deemed appropriate are transported to a higher level of care.”
The statement continued, “Out of an abundance of caution, service members were transported from Al Asad Air Base, Iraq to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany for follow-on screening. When deemed fit for duty, the service members are expected to return to Iraq following screening.”
News of the injuries contradicts initial reporting and President Donald Trump’s claim made during a speech the morning after the attack that “no Americans were harmed.”
However, a military official told CNN that officials initially said there were no injuries because the symptoms “emerged days after the fact.”
“That was the commander’s assessment at the time. Symptoms emerged days after the fact, and they were treated out of an abundance of caution.”
In the aftermath of the attack, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley said that he believed the Iranians meant to kill American service members with their strike.
However, the measure was seen by the president and others as a sign that Iran wanted to de-escalate the situation.
“Iran appears to be standing down, which is a good thing for all parties concerned,” Trump said the day after the attack.
Iran launched the missile attack on the Iraqi base in retaliation for the strike that killed its top general, Qasem Soleimani.
