Key facts
- Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, has been identified as the third U.S. service member believed killed in an Iranian attack in Jordan.
- The attack on Friday in Jordan resulted in the deaths of two other U.S. soldiers, Tyler James Feehan and Isabella Gonzales.
- The soldiers were deployed to support a U.S. mission against the Islamic State group.
- A separate incident in Northern Iraq on Saturday resulted in the death of another service member during a controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian drone.
- The U.S. has conducted airstrikes targeting Iranian military facilities in response to the attacks.
The U.S. military has confirmed that Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, is believed to be the third service member killed in Friday's Iranian attack on a base in Jordan. This brings the total number of U.S. service members killed since the war began to 18.
Earlier, the Pentagon identified Tyler James Feehan, 25, and Isabella Gonzales, 19, as the other two soldiers who died in Jordan. These soldiers were deployed to support a U.S. mission against the Islamic State group. The deaths mark the first troop fatalities from direct Iranian fire since the war's opening days.
In a separate incident on Saturday, a third service member was killed in Northern Iraq during the controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian one-way attack drone. United States Central Command (CENTCOM) made this announcement on Sunday.
The U.S. has conducted retaliatory airstrikes targeting Iranian missile depots, drones, and air defense facilities, vowing swift punishment for the deaths. CENTCOM stated that these strikes aimed to degrade Iranian military capabilities. The strikes concluded Saturday night and targeted Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces.
Iranian state media reported that Qeshm Island and Bandar Abbas were among the targets of the U.S. strikes. Meanwhile, an IRGC-affiliated news station reported that Iran had struck U.S. assets in Kuwait in retaliation, targeting two bases with kamikaze drones.
President Donald Trump commented on the soldiers' deaths, calling it a "very sad thing" and reiterating his goal of preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. The article notes that the deaths were the 15th and 16th among U.S. service members since the war began in February, with over 430 wounded, though other reports suggest higher casualty figures.