Trump's Soleimani Attack Legacy: Over 100 US Troops Now Diagnosed With Traumatic Brain Injuries From Iran Attack
February 11th 2020
President Donald J. Trump shakes hands and takes photos with military personnel during a stop-over (The White House)
By Kerry Eleveld
Donald Trump trivializes them as "headaches," but traumatic brain injuries have now been diagnosed in more than 100 U.S. troops following the Iranian missile strike that targeted the al-Asad air base in western Iraq, according to CNN.
Trump and his Defense Department officials originally said no servicemembers had been injured by the strike, which Iran launched in response to the assassination of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani on January 2. By the end of January, zero had ticked up to 64, according to the Pentagon, and now 100-plus. Overall, around 200 troops were in the affected area, so officials say the number could continue to increase.
Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley said the number has been on the rise because most of the cases are mild and take time to manifest. The affected troops have mostly been removed from the region and sent to either Europe or the U.S.
Trump has dismissed traumatic brain injuries as "not very serious," as only someone with Trump's mental capacity could do.
Posted with permission