⚡️🇺🇸🇮🇷 — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth harshly criticized The Washington Post on Friday over its report that more U.S. service members have died in the Middle East since the Iran war began than the Pentagon has publicly disclosed, calling the story "DISGUSTING and FAKE."

➡️ Hours earlier, the Post, citing six officials familiar with the Defense Department's internal casualty accounting data who spoke anonymously, reported that there have been at least 22 military fatalities — four more than appear in the Pentagon's public database, the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS). A sixth official said 23 service members have died since Feb. 28, when the Trump administration, in concert with Israel, initiated the Iran war.

Not all of the undisclosed deaths are directly tied to the conflict, this person said, but they involved U.S. personnel who were in the Middle East amid ongoing hostilities.

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