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Jordan and Iraq deaths
The Pentagon identified two U.S. Army soldiers killed in Jordan during Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, including Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, with a third service member reported missing in the same attacks.
“Who were the 3 US soldiers killed in Iranian attacks over the weekend”
ABC News reported that the weekend deaths brought the toll to at least 17 U.S. service members killed since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28, and that roughly 500 were wounded, citing Defense Department figures and an updated casualty count provided Monday by Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell.
ABC News also said another service member died Sunday following the controlled detonation of a downed Iranian attack drone at Erbil Air Base in Iraq, naming Army Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, of Fayetteville, North Carolina.
AP News added that Feehan and Gonzales were killed in Friday’s attacks and that U.S. Central Command said Sunday that “unidentified remains” have been found and were being examined.
The AP account said the deaths reflected the reality that American soldiers can face lethal risks without being on the ground in Iran, as forces across the Middle East make other nations targets of Iran and its allies.
Pentagon, lawmakers, and debate
As Iran’s attacks expanded, CBS News said Iran targeted U.S. assets in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan and a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, after the U.S. military said it carried out a 10th consecutive night of strikes on Iranian military infrastructure.
CBS News reported a testy exchange during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, where Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pressed lawmakers for tens of billions in extra Pentagon funding and sparred with Democratic Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan, with Peters saying the administration’s Iran strategy was a failure and Hegseth calling Peters’ remarks “reckless,” “irresponsible” and “smears” on service members.
In the same CBS account, Hegseth told lawmakers that some Iranian ballistic missile stockpiles survived because they are buried underground, while he argued the U.S. bombing campaigns had put Iran “in the worst place they’ve ever been.”
ABC News quoted Brig. Gen. Glenn Henke saying, “We are profoundly saddened by the loss of Pvt. Isabella Gonzales,” and described Gonzales as posthumously promoted to private first class.
ABC News also quoted Brig. Gen. John Dawber saying, “We stand fully committed to supporting his family and loved ones through this incredibly difficult time,” in reference to 1st Lt. Tyler Feehan.
Casualties, costs, and next steps
CBS News said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told lawmakers the Iran war has cost about $37.5 billion, a figure he said includes anticipated cost of military pay through the end of the fiscal year.
“Hardly had the Pentagon announced the identities of the two American soldiers killed in the latest attack on an air base in Jordan when social media platforms in the United States erupted with a storm of anger and unprecedented controversy”
Al Jazeera reported that the United States carried out its ninth consecutive night of air strikes against Iran, with U.S. President Donald Trump telling reporters the Pentagon was hitting Iran “very hard” to honour the three service members killed in Jordan and Iraq.
Al Jazeera also said Trump told reporters, “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” while U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged “other countries” to “step up” to help protect shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, whether by providing “hardware or finances.”
CNN reported the Department of Defense identified Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton of Fayetteville, North Carolina, as killed in Iraq during a controlled detonation of a downed Iranian drone, and said the deaths marked the first American casualties resulting from Iranian strikes since March.
The Washington Post said the Pentagon told reporters nearly 100 U.S. troops have been injured in the war with Iran over the last two weeks, underscoring the significance of Tehran’s strikes on U.S. military installations across the region since negotiations to end the conflict collapsed.
