WASHINGTON - Reports of sexual assaults in the military increased by about 24 percent last year and more than twice as many offenders were punished than in 2005, according to a new Pentagon report.

There were nearly 3,000 sexual assault reports filed in 2006, compared to almost 2,400 the previous year. Action was taken against 780 people, ranging from courts-martial and discharges to other administrative remedies.

The cases involved members of the military who were victims or accused of the assaults. The military counts rape, nonconsensual sodomy, indecent assault and attempts to commit any of those as sexual assault, though the 17-page report contained no data on how many of each were reported.

This is the third year the military has compiled sexual assault statistics, but the reporting methods have changed each year, making comparisons of the annual reports difficult.

Of the 2,947 sexual assaults reported last year, 756 were initially filed under a program that allows victims to report the incident and receive health care or counseling services but does not notify law enforcement or commanders.

The restricted, confidential reporting program also allows the victims to consider pursuing an investigation later, and that was done in 86 of the 756 cases last year. Data for 2005 included only the restricted cases for half the year.