While officials from the Islamic Republic have openly acknowledged the heavy U.S. airstrikes that hit military objectives in southern Iran over the past 48 hours, data released by the Ministry of Health, the state news agency IRNA, and local officials sharply contradict one another, obscuring the true human cost of the bombardments.
Hossein Kermanpour, the head of the Ministry of Health’s information center, announced that U.S. operations on July 8 and 9 killed 14 individuals and wounded 78 others. According to Kermanpour, the strikes spanned five provinces, and 47 of the wounded remain hospitalized.
However, statistics published simultaneously across other state-run media tell a completely different story.
The Main State News Agency (IRNA): IRNA has strictly reported the deaths of eight military personnel, consisting of Air Force and Navy servicemen, following the U.S. attacks on southern bases. The state agency has published zero figures regarding civilian casualties.
IRNA Khuzestan: In a separate regional dispatch, IRNA’s Khuzestan branch reported that three individuals were killed and several others wounded in a strike on the outskirts of Ahvaz. The regional outlet attributed this specific attack to the “Zionist-American regime.”
