Updated

Updated · CBS New York · Aug 11

Pentagon Confirms 153 Civilian Deaths in 3 Yemen Strikes as Harm-Mitigation Office Shrinks 90%

Updated

Updated · CBS New York · Aug 11

Pentagon Confirms 153 Civilian Deaths in 3 Yemen Strikes as Harm-Mitigation Office Shrinks 90%

Q: After initially claiming zero civilian deaths, what forced the Pentagon to finally admit killing over 150 noncombatants in Yemen?

The Pentagon’s reversal was driven by its own internal civilian-casualty review, pushed into the open by mounting outside evidence and congressional scrutiny. For months, the Defense Department had said Operation Rough Rider in Yemen caused no civilian deaths or injuries. That position became harder to sustain after human rights groups, open-source investigators and media reports documented major strikes with apparent mass civilian casualties, including the attack on Ras Issa Port and the strike on a migrant detention center in Saada. At the same time, lawmakers demanded answers and pressed the Pentagon for the results of its inquiries. In responses to Congress, U.S. Central Command acknowledged it had reviewed dozens of strikes and found that at least three incidents were “more likely than not” to have caused civilian harm. Those findings were then incorporated into the Pentagon’s annual civilian-casualty accounting shared with Congress. That report forced the public admission: 153 civilians killed and nearly 250 wounded, with 15 more incidents still under review. In short, the Pentagon changed its story because its internal investigators could no longer reconcile the original zero-casualty claim with the evidence gathered from specific strikes, while pressure from watchdogs, journalists and Congress made continued denial much harder.

3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Aug 11

A report to Congress says U.S. operations killed 153 civilians and injured 243 in 2025, with all confirmed casualties tied to three April airstrikes in Yemen under Operation Rough Rider.
The deadliest strikes hit near Ras Isa Port on April 17, killing 80, and near Saada on April 28, killing 68; another strike near Sanaa on April 6 killed five. The Pentagon relied on intelligence, imagery and public reporting, not site visits.
The tally still excludes about 120 deaths from 2025 boat strikes in the Caribbean and Pacific, and the military was still assessing 15 other Yemen incidents flagged by nongovernmental groups.
Airwars had estimated at least 258 civilian deaths in Rough Rider, while the Pentagon says civilian deaths had fallen to one in 2023 and two in 2024 before rising again with the Houthi campaign.
The disclosure lands as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has cut civilian-harm programs: the Civilian Protection Center of Excellence fell to nine staff from 40, and officials said broader personnel reductions since March 2025 reached roughly 90%.