U.S. troops and families endure strain of protracted conflict with Iran as ceasefire stalemate persists

Fourteen weeks after President Donald Trump ordered an attack on Iran, U.S. troops in the Middle East operate amid exchanges of fire with Iran every few days as the Navy blockades Iran’s ports, while at home the Pentagon scrambles to bolster production of depleted munitions. Trump declared a ceasefire with Iran in April, but the war has settled into a stalemate, with Iran keeping the Strait of Hormuz largely closed to shipping and Trump threatening a return to full-scale bombings if peace negotiations fail. Counterattacks from Iran continue against U.S. allies in the region; Iran targeted Bahrain and Kuwait in a ballistic missile attack on Friday.

Around 400 U.S. troops have been wounded during the conflict, many with traumatic brain injuries, and over 90% have returned to duty, the U.S. military says. Thirteen service members have been killed. Among the wounded is U.S. Army Reserve Sgt. 1st Class Cory Hicks, 37, who was injured in an Iranian drone attack at the start of the war that left him without a pulse for minutes. Punctured by shrapnel that severed an artery and fractured his jaw, Hicks is also wrestling with the impact of a traumatic brain injury. “It sounded like a small prop plane coming in quick,” Hicks told Reuters. “And then it just smashed into the building and blew up. And I remember a big bright ball of flames and lots of pressure and heat, and I was out.” Hicks said six fellow soldiers died in the Kuwait attack that injured him, including Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39. “I was talking to Sgt. Amor when the drone hit. She was maybe 10 feet away from me,” he said. “It’s something that I’m going to have to deal with the rest of my life.”

Families of U.S. service members also confront stress amid confusion about what is happening during the ceasefire. Yadira Dessaint, mother of a sergeant in the Army Reserve from California’s San Fernando Valley, said she sends a text every day: “Good morning, son. I love you.” Dessaint asked not to identify her son for fear of retaliation by the U.S. military. She has protested for an end to the war, which has damaged Trump’s popularity. Just one in four respondents in a May Reuters/Ipsos poll said the U.S. military action in Iran has been worth it.

Joseph Votel, the former commander of the U.S. military’s Central Command, described the current conflict phase as “a very, very dangerous period for us.” He said keeping troops ready during the ceasefire is no small challenge. “It puts on a lot of pressure on leaders to make sure that people are still at their edge,” Votel said. Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the U.S. military stands ready to support deployed troops “in every way imaginable.” “The Department of War is proud of our incredible troops. Their courage, readiness, grit, and unmatched professionalism are why they are the greatest fighting force in human history,” Parnell said.

The signs of strain on military operations are visible in the huge expenditure of munitions for the war. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said it could take years to fully replenish U.S. inventories of missiles and interceptors. Tom Karako, director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., said it is not just inventories that are eroding. “Wars are expensive. They grind on the equipment and the people, as well as the missiles that are shot,” Karako said.