Texas has the most veterans, second most servicemembers killed in war on terror

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(The Center Square) – Texas has the most veterans in the country – nearly 1.5 million – and the second most killed in the war on terror. California has a close second. 

Texas has the second greatest number of service members who’ve paid the ultimate price in America’s 25-year War on Terror, according to Defense Casualty Analysis System data. California has the most. 

Over the last 25 years, Republican and Democratic presidents maintained a policy of waging a war on Islamic terrorism. The wars have cost American taxpayers at least $10 trillion and more than 45,000 servicemembers and personnel died as a result. More servicemembers committed suicide than were killed in action, more than 30,000, The Center Square reported. 

President George W. Bush launched the Global War on Terror when he launched Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan less than one month after 9/11. The objective was to destroy al Qaeda, the Taliban, and other Islamic terrorist groups, and to remove Iraq’s leader, Saddam Hussein, arguing he had weapons of mass destruction, the DCAS states.

Operation Freedom’s Sentinel also launched after 9/11 in Afghanistan to fight the Taliban. 

Nearly 200 Texans were killed in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Freedom’s Sentinel; 194 were killed and 1,562 were wounded in action, according to DCAS data. 

Operation Iraqi Freedom was launched in March 2003 with U.S. troops seizing Baghdad within 21 days. Within roughly two months, major combat operations in Iraq ended.

In 2007, Operation New Dawn was launched in Iraq to implement a counterinsurgency strategy against sectarian warfare among the Sunni, Shia and Kurdish forces. This operation ended more than three and a half years later in 2010.

Operation Inherent Resolve was launched in August 2014 to support Iraqi Security Force operations fighting against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). 

According to DCAS data, 432 Texans were killed in these three Iraq operations; 2,857 were wounded in action. 

U.S. combat operations in Afghanistan ended on Dec. 31, 2014. After that, U.S. coalition forces remained in the country to train Afghan National Defense and Security Forces and conduct counterterrorism operations against al Qaeda. At the time, 13 years after 9/11, neither the Taliban nor al Qaeda had been destroyed. 

By 2021, neither terrorist organization had been destroyed and former President Joe Biden turned over control of Afghanistan to the Taliban. He also left behind $7 billion worth of U.S. military equipment, weapons and technology. Within a year, suicides among U.S. service members skyrocketed and a National Warrior Call Day initiative was launched, The Center Square reported. The average daily number of veteran suicides was 17.5 in 2023. 

Thirteen service members were killed during the withdrawal, including a 20-year-old Marine from Laredo, Texas, David Lee Espinoza.

After vowing to end “forever wars,” President Donald Trump launched Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 28 against Iran alleging its nuclear capabilities were an imminent threat. 

Among the first servicemembers killed was 19-year-old Army Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, from north Texas. So far, two Texans have been killed in the conflict, according to DCAS data.

As of 2023, there are nearly 1.5 million veterans living in Texas, the largest veteran population in the country, according to a Texas Workforce Investment Council 2025 report. 

More than half of the veteran population lives in 10 counties, with the most in the San Antonio area in Bexar County. The next greatest number live in Harris, Tarrant, Dallas, Bell, El Paso, Travis, Denton, Collin and Williamson counties. 

The majority of Texas veterans are men. Nearly 30% of Texas veterans, roughly 428,000, have a service-connected disability rating, the report states, noting the data is incomplete.

In 2023, 50% of Texas veterans were working, accounting for 5.1% of the state’s total workforce. The majority are employed in construction, justice, public safety and public education sectors, as well as self-employed, according to the report. 

Multiple programs exist to support Texas veterans, including through the Texas General Land Office, which has administered programs for veterans since 1836. 

It oversees affordable long-term nursing care for qualified veterans, spouses and Gold Star parents, provides low-interest loans through the Texas Land Board to veterans and military members, and oversees a “Voices of Veterans” oral history program, recording the first-hand accounts of veterans who served in all branches of the U.S. military.

It also maintains five state veteran’s cemeteries and established an Unaccompanied Veterans Program for eligible veterans with no known next of kin. 

Those in need of assistance are encouraged to contact the Texas Veterans Call Center at 1-800-252-8387 or email [email protected].