WASHINGTON: The Pentagon instructed US military personnel in August to stop referring to continuing operations involving Iran as “Operation Epic Fury,” CBS reported, citing an email sent to the US Air Force.
According to the August 7 email, military leaders were directed to describe the activities as “overseas operations in the CENTCOM AOR,” referring to US Central Command’s area of responsibility.
However, the Pentagon told CBS that Operation Epic Fury had officially ended on May 5, following the April ceasefire.
A Defense Department official said subsequent US activities included freedom-of-navigation operations and strikes intended to reduce threats from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to commercial shipping, Gulf countries and American forces.
Pentagon Changes Classification of US Casualties
The revised terminology has also raised questions about how the Pentagon categorises American casualties following the operation’s official conclusion.
In July, the Pentagon classified four soldiers killed in Jordan and Iraq as “Overseas Operations Casualties,” separating them from 14 deaths listed under Operation Epic Fury.
Moreover, the number of personnel listed as wounded under Epic Fury fell from 482 to 417, while another 207 appeared under overseas operations.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell previously attributed discrepancies to a temporary data disruption.
Defence Department Website Shows Inconsistencies
A Pentagon official subsequently told CBS that casualties occurring after Epic Fury ended are classified under overseas operations in CENTCOM’s area of responsibility.
Nevertheless, apparent inconsistencies remained on the Defense Department website as of Friday.
The site continued to classify five soldiers wounded in June and one soldier killed in July as Operation Epic Fury casualties, despite the Pentagon’s confirmation that the operation ended in May.
The Pentagon reportedly did not explain why it issued the August terminology guidance three months after declaring Epic Fury concluded.
