Trump downplays troop brain injuries from Iran attack as ‘headaches’

Former President Donald Trump downplayed the accidents of troops who suffered traumatic mind accidents following missile strikes towards a U.S. base on the finish of his time in workplace, referring to them as “complications” at a marketing campaign occasion in Wisconsin on Tuesday.

Pentagon officers have mentioned greater than 100 U.S. troops had been identified with mind accidents following a missile assault on the Ain al-Asad base in Iraq in January 2020. The assault got here in response to the American killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Basic Qassem Soleimani in Iraq a number of days earlier.

Whereas the missiles didn’t straight strike any U.S. forces, the barrage of strikes induced dizziness, sensitivity to gentle, nausea and different traumatic mind harm signs in dozens of troops stationed there, Protection Division officers mentioned. In some circumstances, the results lasted for weeks or months, and a number of troops needed to be evacuated to Germany for medical remedy.

On Tuesday, when requested by a reporter if he wished he had been more durable on Iran, given the severity of the accidents incurred in that assault, Trump downplayed the outcome.

“What does ‘injured’ imply?” he mentioned. “You imply as a result of that they had a headache? As a result of the bombs by no means hit the fort…”

“None of these very correct missiles hit our fort. All of them hit outdoors. There was no person damage, aside from the sound was loud. Some individuals mentioned that damage, and I settle for that.”

Practically 80 troops acquired Purple Hearts for accidents associated to the assault, most related to traumatic mind harm. An inspector common report launched in November 2021 hinted the variety of accidents might have been even larger, as a result of army officers didn’t correctly doc the entire troops’ well being points.

Trump’s feedback drew fast criticism from Democratic Get together officers and prompted condemnation from Gov. Tim Walz in the course of the vice presidential debate on Tuesday night time.

Trump additionally claimed on the occasion that “there was no person ever more durable” in direction of Iran than him. Walz, who served 24 years within the Military Nationwide Guard, disputed that on the debate in New York a number of hours later.

“Iran is nearer to a nuclear weapon than they had been earlier than due to Donald Trump’s fickle management,” Walz mentioned. “And when Iranian missiles did fall close to U.S. troops and so they acquired traumatic mind accidents. Donald Trump wrote it off as ‘complications.’”

Ohio Sen. JD Vance, Trump’s operating mate and a Marine Corps veteran, didn’t straight tackle the army accidents in his feedback however blamed President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris — the Democratic nominee for president — for weak insurance policies towards Iranian aggression.

Trump has beforehand downplayed the severity of the Iranian missile assault towards U.S. army forces. Within the days following the assault, whereas he was nonetheless president, Trump known as the accidents “not very severe” and labeled the injury induced as “minimal.”