US troops were hurt in Iran missile strike despite Trump claim
ELEVEN US troops were hurt in the Iranian missile strike on the Al Asad air base in Iraq — despite claims by Donald Trump and the Pentagon last week that there were no casualties.
Today’s about-face announcement by US officials came after it emerged that several American soldiers had been treated for concussion.
After the January 8 attack, President Trump tweeted “all is well” and said no US servicemen or women had been killed or injured.
There are also claims that the 16 missiles fired in retaliation for America’s killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani the week before were aimed wide of the mark — as the US and Iran teetered on the brink of war.
In a statement today, US officials in Iraq told CNN: “While no US service members were killed in the January 8 Iranian attack on Al Asad Air base, several were treated for concussion symptoms from the blast and are still being assessed.
“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.” Another official said the concussion symptoms emerged days after the attack.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei led Friday prayers in the capital Tehran today for the first time since 2012. The 80-yearold leader’s public appearance was seen as an attempt to calm protests over the shooting down of a Ukrainian jet last week by Iran’s military which mistook it for a US cruise missile.
All 176 passengers and crew members on the Ukraine International Airlines flight were killed. After a meeting in London yesterday of foreign ministers from five nations that lost citizens — Canada, Sweden, Afghanistan, Ukraine and Britain — there were demands for Iran’s “full co-operation” in an international inquiry into the crash.
The Iranian regime also faces pressure over the country’s economy, which has been badly hit by US sanctions.