The U.S. Department of Defense has introduced a new method of reporting military casualties linked to operations involving Iran, separating personnel killed or wounded after July 7 from those recorded during earlier hostilities, according to a report published Tuesday by investigative outlet The Intercept.

The report said casualties sustained since July 7 are now listed on a separate Defense Department webpage under the broader category of "Overseas Operations", rather than being included in the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) figures covering the earlier conflict period.

According to The Intercept, the new page listed 273 U.S. service members as killed or wounded in overseas operations since July 7.

When combined with the official casualty figures previously attributed to Iranian retaliatory strikes during the earlier conflict period, the reported total reaches 704 personnel, the outlet said.

However, The Intercept reported that its own investigation identified additional known casualties that were not reflected in the Defense Department's published figures. Including those cases, the outlet estimated that the total number of U.S. personnel killed or wounded could exceed 900.

The report also noted that, based on the Defense Department's own figures, the casualties reported since July 7 represent an 83% increase compared with those recorded during the earlier phase of the conflict.

According to The Intercept, the Defense Department told The New York Times that the reporting change reflects the conclusion of the earlier military campaign. Officials said casualties are now categorized under "Overseas Operations" within the area of responsibility overseen by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which manages American military operations across much of the Middle East.

An unnamed U.S. government official, however, told The Intercept that the revised reporting system was intended to make casualty figures less visible.

"This is certainly designed to conceal the count of the wounded," the official was quoted as saying.

Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell rejected suggestions that the Pentagon was attempting to hide casualty information, describing such allegations as "baseless and malicious."

The report also pointed to several revisions in the Defense Casualty Analysis System.

According to The Intercept, DCAS listed 500 casualties related to the earlier conflict on July 21, but that figure has since been revised downward to 431.

The outlet further reported that on April 21 the number of personnel classified as wounded in action was reduced by 15 without any public explanation.

Separately, military records obtained under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act and reviewed by The War Horse, a publication covering military and veterans' affairs, reportedly documented more than 400 casualties between Feb. 28 and April 8, including 70 casualties recorded on March 18 alone.

The Defense Department has not publicly addressed the reported discrepancies cited by The Intercept beyond its explanation that casualty reporting now reflects a different operational classification following the end of the earlier campaign. (ILKHA)