Conscientious objection: what the military departure reports show — Is America Better Yet?"

**Roberto Zapatero** *Independent Forensic Investigative Journalist, Is America Better Yet?* *Living Record. Reporting checked September 2, 2026.* Five U.S. service members told **MS NOW** they wanted to leave the military after recent operations challenged their moral beliefs. Their concerns included civilian harm in Iran and the basis for attacks on boats suspected of carrying drugs. The August 26 reporting, by **Priya Sridhar** and **Peggy Helman**, is available in a [republished excerpt](https://americans-dream.com/2026/08/28/spike-in-conscientious-objectors-during-trumps-undeclared-war/) linking to the [original report](https://www.ms.now/news/conscientious-objectors-military-boat-strikes-iran-war). The term for the process they were exploring is **conscientious objection**. Their concerns are reported accounts, not independent findings in this article that a particular attack violated the law. The **Center on Conscience and War** said it had assisted about **140 applicants since February**, compared with about **50 in a typical full year**, according to **The New Republic’s** [August 26 account of MS NOW’s reporting](https://newrepublic.com/post/214749/conscientious-objectors-military-trump). Those figures describe the assistance organization’s work. They do not establish how many applications the military received, approved or converted into completed discharges. There was an earlier sign of increased demand. In an [April 10 NPR report](https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-04-10/theres-growing-disquiet-in-the-military-the-iran-war-made-it-worse), the center’s counseling director, **Bill Galvin**, said it took on more than 80 new clients in March. These reporting periods overlap; the March and later figures should not be added together. **Calling for advice, preparing an application, receiving approval and leaving service are different events.** No official military-wide total of completed conscientious-objector discharges for 2026 was located in the public sources reviewed for this article. The reporting supports increased demand for help; it does not establish a counted mass departure of troops. The formal standard is also narrower than disagreement with a leader or one operation. **Department of Defense Instruction 1300.06** requires sincere, deeply held religious, moral or ethical opposition to participation in war in any form. Opposition only to a particular war does not meet that standard. Membership in a religious organization is not required. [Read the instruction](https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/130006_dodi_2017.pdf). The instruction provides for **Class 1-O**, covering discharge, and **Class 1-A-O**, covering noncombatant service. Applications receive individual review. Filing does not end a service member’s obligations; the instruction generally requires continued compliance with duty and transfer orders while the case is processed, while calling for efforts to assign duties that conflict least with the applicant’s beliefs. The Pentagon has disputed broader retention concerns. **Kingsley Wilson**, its press secretary, told NPR for the April 10 report that every service was meeting its fiscal-year retention targets. That is an April response reported by NPR, not a new statement obtained by IABY in September. [NPR’s report and response](https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-04-10/theres-growing-disquiet-in-the-military-the-iran-war-made-it-worse). The Army resignation story circulating now concerns another kind of departure. **Aaron Parnas’s** [September 1 roundup](https://aaronparnas.substack.com/p/major-update-massie-reads-epstein) discusses senior leadership changes. **Reuters** [reported](https://www.reuters.com/world/us-army-secretary-driscoll-resigns-wsj-reports-2026-08-31/) that **Army Secretary Dan Driscoll** submitted his resignation amid tensions with **Pete Hegseth**. In a subsequent public statement, Driscoll identified September 2 as his last full day and credited Hegseth’s support, without stating why he was leaving, the **Associated Press** [reported](https://apnews.com/article/237d3fb496f89603b3f01ee02d8f238b). **CNN’s** [September 2 reporting](https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/army-leadership-void-fuels-fears-090029500.html), attributed to sources familiar with the situation, also says **Deputy Undersecretary Dave Fitzgerald** resigned. Earlier accounts had described his departure as expected. CNN’s sources linked the disputes to Army modernization and leadership decisions. **Those senior civilian resignations are separate from conscientious-objector applications by service members.** The available reports should be read with that distinction intact, and with completed discharge totals still unverified. **Watch IABY for updates. Subscribe free to get new reporting by email.** ## Sources - [Department of Defense Instruction 1300.06, July 12, 2017](https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/130006_dodi_2017.pdf), especially Sections 3 and 4 and the glossary. - [NPR, Kat Lonsdorf and Tom Bowman, April 10, 2026](https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-04-10/theres-growing-disquiet-in-the-military-the-iran-war-made-it-worse). - [MS NOW, Priya Sridhar and Peggy Helman, August 26, 2026](https://www.ms.now/news/conscientious-objectors-military-boat-strikes-iran-war); [excerpt reviewed](https://americans-dream.com/2026/08/28/spike-in-conscientious-objectors-during-trumps-undeclared-war/); [The New Republic’s account of the assistance figures](https://newrepublic.com/post/214749/conscientious-objectors-military-trump). - [Aaron Parnas’s September 1, 2026 roundup](https://aaronparnas.substack.com/p/major-update-massie-reads-epstein). - [Reuters on Driscoll’s resignation](https://www.reuters.com/world/us-army-secretary-driscoll-resigns-wsj-reports-2026-08-31/); [AP on his public departure statement](https://apnews.com/article/237d3fb496f89603b3f01ee02d8f238b); [CNN’s September 2 report, republished by Yahoo](https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/army-leadership-void-fuels-fears-090029500.html). *Reporting note: This article summarizes identified reporting and the official discharge instruction. IABY did not interview the service members or inspect their application files. MS NOW’s full page was unavailable during review; its accessible excerpt and The New Republic’s attributed account were checked. Wire and other reports were also checked through accessible indexed text or republication where necessary. Substantive corrections and updates to this Living Record will be dated.* Artificial intelligence was used to assist with research organization, drafting, editing and verification. AI-generated material was not treated as evidence. Factual claims were checked against identifiable sources before publication. Roberto Zapatero (IABY) remains responsible for the reporting, writing, sourcing, editorial judgment and final published text. AI assistance does not replace source records, human review, principal article writing or independent verification. **Copyright:** © 2026 Roberto Zapatero / *Is America Better Yet?* All rights reserved. What additional public records would help clarify these departures? Keep the discussion civil. Do not identify anonymous service members or post private personnel files or operational details in public comments. Thank you to those who help locate records, check the reporting and keep IABY’s publishing tools working. **Roberto Zapatero** *Independent Forensic Investigative Journalist* *Is America Better Yet?* **I write for you,** **— Roberto** isamericabetteryet.org