Three American service members have been killed and five others seriously wounded amid U.S. strikes on Iran, the military announced Sunday — the first U.S. fatalities in a major offensive President Donald Trump said could bring additional losses in coming weeks.
The three killed were Army soldiers stationed in Kuwait with a unit responsible for supplies and logistics, according to an individual familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. NBC News and The Washington Post earlier reported the development.
U.S. Central Command, which oversees operations in the Middle East, posted the deaths on X but did not provide timing or location details as Iran continued to retaliate for the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes that it says killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and other leaders. Central Command said several other service members sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions and were expected to return to duty. Identities of the deceased will be withheld for 24 hours while families are notified, the command said.
In a video posted to his Truth Social account, Trump expressed condolences and praised the fallen as patriots who made “the ultimate sacrifice,” adding that their deaths would be avenged. He warned there could be more casualties before the conflict ends, saying the possibility of additional losses is likely even as the U.S. seeks to limit them.
Trump also told the Daily Mail in a phone interview that the troops who were killed were “great people” and reiterated his expectation that more incidents could occur, suggesting the campaign could continue for several weeks.
Iran’s retaliatory strikes have hit U.S. bases in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened what it called its most intense offensive yet against U.S. and Israeli installations. The U.S. military denied Iranian claims that the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was struck, saying the missiles launched did not come close.
In recent weeks the U.S. bolstered its military presence in the region: the carrier Abraham Lincoln and three guided-missile destroyers arrived at the end of January, and the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and four destroyers were dispatched from the Caribbean toward the Middle East.
The Gerald R. Ford was involved in a January raid in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of leader Nicolás Maduro, who was transported to New York to face drug-trafficking charges, the U.S. said. That operation reportedly caused no U.S. fatalities but left seven service members with gunshot and shrapnel injuries; one of those wounded, Chief Warrant Officer 5 Eric Slover, received the Medal of Honor during Trump’s recent State of the Union address.
Trump’s second term has included several military actions abroad, including strikes on Islamic State targets in Syria and operations targeting IS elements in Nigeria, actions he said were responses to threats and attacks on U.S. personnel and interests. Central Command described the operational picture in the region as fluid as U.S. and allied forces respond to continued Iranian actions.
