According to Pentagon assessments, US military operations resulted in 153 civilian deaths and 243 injuries in 2025, a dramatic increase from just two deaths and two injuries recorded in 2024, with all documented casualties attributed to three strikes in Yemen.
The United States military's civilian casualty toll surged significantly in 2025 compared to the previous year, according to Pentagon figures submitted to Congress. Military operations killed 153 civilians and wounded 243 others during the year, representing a sharp departure from 2024 figures, when the Pentagon assessed that only two civilians were killed and two injured as a result of US military activities.
All recorded deaths and injuries in 2025 stemmed from three US strikes conducted in Yemen during April, according to the Pentagon report. The US Central Command determined that these strikes "more likely than not" caused civilian harm. The military operations in Yemen have been directed at reducing the operational capacity of Houthi militants, whom the US describes as Iran-backed forces. As of February 2026, Central Command was continuing to investigate 15 additional incidents in Yemen based on information received from non-governmental organizations.
The Pentagon report notably excluded casualty figures from US military strikes against vessels in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. The US Southern Command assessed that incidents within its operational area in 2025 did not meet the threshold of "more likely than not" to have caused civilian casualties. However, separate reporting indicates that US strikes on vessels alleged by the Trump administration to be transporting narcotics in the Eastern Pacific have resulted in more than 200 deaths since September 2025. International human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the American Civil Liberties Union, have challenged the legality and factual basis of these operations, with critics characterizing them as unlawful extrajudicial killings and questioning the substantiation of the administration's claims regarding targeted vessels.
