Eight U.S. Marines sustained injuries earlier this month during an Iranian anti-ship cruise missile attack in the Strait of Hormuz. The service members were operating aboard a nonmilitary maritime vessel when the strike occurred, an incident that remained undisclosed by the Trump administration until late September 2026.
Strait of Hormuz Cruise Missile Attack Wounds Eight Marines
The military casualties occurred when an Iranian cruise missile struck the ship where the Marines were working. According to three U.S. officials, the attack took place two weeks ago. U.S. sources told NBC that the cruise missile hit the vessel on September 14. According to U.S. officials, the personnel were operating as part of a battalion landing team aboard a vessel that officials declined to identify as a U.S. Navy ship, referring to it only as a maritime vessel.
While the injuries were not seriously injured, the impact left the service members dealing with physical trauma. The victims suffered from smoke inhalation and possibly traumatic brain injuries, as they had symptoms of concussions, such as headaches, the officials said. Despite the strikes and subsequent medical concerns, they returned to duty soon after.
Pentagon Updates Casualty Totals Amid Iran War
The Department of Defense did not publicly disclose the attack. Instead, the incident came to light as the Pentagon adjusted its public tracking data. The Pentagon’s latest update to the U.S.’s casualty list amid the war on Iran added 37 casualties to its public database, incorporating the eight wounded Marines alongside 29 Navy sailors.
Those updates brought the total number of troops wounded during the war to 861. The troops were listed as having been wounded in Overseas Operations,
the Trump administration’s label for troop injuries since July amid its campaign to downplay the war. The database does not provide explanations for the troop injuries, and the Pentagon did not disclose any attacks that could explain the latest tolls. The Department of Defense also quietly added one more U.S. fatality last week, bringing the U.S.’s total death toll to 19 people. The latest fatality was an Army member who officials said died from a medical incident
while on a non-combat flight to Saudi Arabia, in support of the operations related to the Iran war. The report came after The Washington Post reported that the Pentagon is not disclosing four or five additional troop deaths since the start of the war, and that the true toll is 22 or 23 people.
Ceasefire Rejections and Rising Diplomatic Tensions
Iran also offered to resume talks on its nuclear program.
President [Masoud] Pezeshkian and I did not come to New York to sell a war. We came to forge peace,
said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday.
Iranian leadership accompanied the diplomatic opening with a warning. Iran nonetheless remains steadfast in the face of any aggression — even if it comes to an apocalyptic war. At the same time, we are ready for real diplomacy,
Araghchi stated.
Despite mounting casualties and an ever-worsening energy crisis spurred by the war, President Donald Trump rejected the proposal over the weekend. On Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump has told aides that, instead, he expects to begin bombing Iran again after the elections this November, contradicting his public statements claiming that he expects the war to end after the midterms.
