Six US troops have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries (TBI) following Iran-backed attacks in Syria last week that he killed an American contractorthe Pentagon said Thursday.
The six diagnoses of TBI bring the number of Americans who sustained injuries in the attack to 13. Seven Americans were injured with flesh wounds, the Pentagon said.
“In addition to the seven injured service members that I have highlighted, there have been six additional US service members who have subsequently been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries as a result of Iran-backed attacks,” the secretary Pentagon Press Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said Thursday.
Four of the service members who suffered TBI were involved in the March 23 strike while three others were injured in the March 24 attack, according to Ryder. The TBIs were found during routine screening for personnel who were near an explosion, Ryder said.
It was possible that as those screenings continued, more TBIs could be diagnosed, Ryder noted.
TBIs can be similar to concussions and present with symptoms such as headache, dizziness, irritability, fatigue or poor concentration.
The seven Americans who sustained flesh wounds were in stable condition, although one was injured seriously enough to require evacuation to Landstuhl, according to Ryder.
The series of attacks began last week when a drone targeted US forces in northeastern Syria, killing an American contractor and wounding six other Americans. The United States retaliated with strikes by F-15E fighters against sites used by groups backed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Congress on Tuesday that the sites “included a headquarters element building as well as storage sites, where key munitions were stored and other capabilities were developed.”
According to Ryder, US retaliatory strikes killed eight militants.
Following the retaliatory strikes, Iranian-backed militias carried out three attacks on bases in Syria. In one of them, another member of the United States service was injured but is in stable condition.
Austin told Congress on Thursday that there have been about 83 attacks on US forces in Syria by Iranian-backed proxies in recent years.
– Paulina Smolinksy contributed reporting.