Pentagon: 153 civilians killed in US operations during 2025
A US official, citing Pentagon assessments, said US military operations resulted in the deaths of 153 civilians and injuries to 243 others during 2025, a sharp rise from 2024, which recorded two civilian deaths. All casualties occurred in three US airstrikes in Yemen in April 2025. The US Central Command continues to assess 15 other incidents until February 2026.
A US official, citing assessments from the US Department of Defense (the Pentagon), said that US military operations resulted in the deaths of 153 civilians and injuries to 243 others during 2025, a significant increase compared to 2024, which recorded only two civilian deaths and two injuries, according to the department's assessments. According to a report submitted by the Pentagon to Congress and published by US media, all civilian casualties recorded during 2025 resulted from three US airstrikes in Yemen. The report indicated that US Central Command concluded that the three strikes, carried out in April 2025, 'likely' caused civilian casualties, while the command continues to assess 15 other incidents in Yemen until February 2026, following reports received from non-governmental organizations. The United States says its operations in Yemen aim to weaken the capabilities of the Iran-backed Houthi group, while the Pentagon report recorded no civilian casualties from US operations in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. The report clarified that US Southern Command estimated, as of February 1, 2026, that there were no incidents likely to have resulted in civilian casualties from US military operations in its areas of responsibility during 2025. In contrast, the administration of President Donald Trump has since September 2025 launched attacks on ships it said were used to transport drugs in the Eastern Pacific, describing the targeted individuals as 'drug terrorists.' According to statistics announced after those strikes, the operations resulted in the deaths of more than 200 people. These strikes have been criticized by human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, which described them as unlawful extrajudicial killings, while the American Civil Liberties Union considered the Trump administration's justifications regarding the identity of the targets to lack foundation.