‘Very sad thing’: Trump reacts to the death of two troops in Jordan; here’s what we know about the attack | Today’s news
Hours after two US military personnel were killed and one was reported missing in Jordan following Iranian strikes, US President Donald Trump on Saturday (local time) called the deaths “a very sad thing”.
He made the remarks to NewsNation, saying the two soldiers died “in the service of our country” and reiterating that a key goal of the war is to “never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump’s remarks came after US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced the deaths of service members in the incident, which marked the first US military installations hit by Iranian fire since March.
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US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also acknowledged the news of the death of members of the military. In a post on X, he wrote: “God, heroes. Their sacrifice only strengthens our resolve.”
Here’s what we know about the attack
In a post on social media, US CENTCOM said: “On July 17, two US service members in Jordan were killed in action as US Central Command (CENTCOM) and partner forces defended against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. Additionally, one service member is currently missing.”
CENTCOM withholds the identity of service members who have been killed until 24 hours after their next of kin are notified.
Additionally, four US service members were medically evacuated to hospitals in Jordan but were later released, while another suffered minor injuries and returned to duty.
CNN reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the attacks on a base used by US forces at the Al-Azraq base in Jordan in a statement on Saturday. The Revolutionary Guards claimed to have “totally destroyed” several planes in the attack, which they said was led by both rockets and drones.
US renews attacks on Iran
Following the attacks on US forces in Jordan, the US military announced on Saturday night (local time) that it had launched renewed strikes against Iran to “swiftly punish” it for killing US military personnel. CENTCOM said the airstrikes against Iran began at 6:00 p.m. ET on the orders of the US president and were aimed at weakening “Tehran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz,” seen as Washington’s latest move to pressure the Islamic Republic to relinquish control of the critical trade route, NBC News reported.
US military death toll rises to 16
The latest killing of two service members brings the death toll to 16, CNN reported, citing the country’s Defense Casualty Analysis System. At least six US Army Reserve soldiers were killed earlier in March by an Iranian direct strike on a makeshift operations center in the Kuwaiti port of Shuaiba. A few days later, an army sergeant died after being injured in an attack in Saudi Arabia.
In March, six service members were killed after a US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq, although the incident was not “due to enemy or friendly fire”.
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Earlier this month, the US Navy suspended its search for a missing service member whose helicopter crashed into the Arabian Sea, with the military saying “there is no indication that the emergency was caused by enemy action.”
The latest casualties come as a fragile ceasefire between the two sides collapsed this week and both sides exchanged fire.
