U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has issued an apology for mistakenly stating that no Americans had died in the Iran conflict, admitting that 18 service members have been killed and clarifying he was referencing a separate military operation in Venezuela when he made the incorrect assertion.
Lutnick, in a statement posted on X, expressed deep remorse for his comments, stating, "I misspoke. Eighteen members of our military have died, and to those families my heart breaks and I am so very sorry for their loss. I was thinking about the Venezuelan military operation where no service members died."
The commerce secretary's initial remarks were made during an interview with CNBC on Wednesday. In that interview, Lutnick commented on the administration's approach to Iran, saying, "I think the way the president is playing Iran... There haven't been American deaths. It's really just an economic choke-out, which the administration is now executing more broadly, and I think it'll be very effective." Venezuela was not mentioned in the CNBC interview.
Prior to Lutnick's apology, former President Donald Trump addressed the situation on his social media platform, Truth Social. Trump wrote, "Sec. Lutnick had Venezuela on his mind when he said nobody was killed. 18 people were killed in Iran!"
As of the latest reports, the United States has confirmed 18 military personnel deaths and over 750 wounded in connection with the conflict.
