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Drone detonation kills US
The United States said a service member was killed in northern Iraq on Saturday during a "controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance" from a downed Iranian one-way attack drone, and CENTCOM said a second service member was wounded and continues to receive medical treatment for a minor injury.
“The United States has launched new strikes on Iran after two of its soldiers were killed in Iranian strikes in Jordan late on Friday”
The same reporting said CENTCOM recovered "unidentified remains" in Jordan after a service member was listed as missing in action following an Iranian attack on a military facility in Jordan that killed two US service members on July 17.
The BBC framed the wider context as an eighth day of escalating attacks in which the US and Iran exchanged strikes after a preliminary ceasefire collapsed less than a month after it began.
The Guardian added that the incident brings the total number of US service members who have died since the US and Israel launched war against Iran five months ago to 17.
In response to the deaths, the US military said its latest attacks were designed to "swiftly punish" Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces it said were responsible for the attack in Jordan.
Officials trade threats
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned that America’s "repeated breaches" of the memorandum of understanding had "laid bare a fundamental truth: the signature of the US president is utterly worthless and devoid of credibility".
In the same escalation, the Hill quoted Sen. John Fetterman saying, "Now remember, they have nuclear dust. Why isn’t that important?" as he argued the situation justifies more US strikes.
The BBC reported that Jordan summoned Iran’s charges d'affaires in Amman to demand an immediate end to what the foreign ministry called "unjustified and blatant Iranian attacks," insisting that its security was "a red line that cannot be crossed".
The Hill also reported that President Trump told NewsNation’s Hannah Brandt that the deaths were "a very sad thing" and said the US would never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.
Meanwhile, the BBC said Israel’s military reported interceptors launched toward missile debris after projectiles were launched towards Jordan, with "interceptor fragments" identified near Eilat and no damage or injuries reported.
Strait of Hormuz stakes
The conflict’s next phase is tied to the Strait of Hormuz, where the BBC said Washington reimposed its blockade of Iranian ports and Tehran declared the strait closed as the US military said its attacks aimed to "degrade Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping" in the strait.
“The eighth night of U”
AP said the renewed exchanges of fire have left shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz "largely stalled" and that both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure relied on by millions of people.
CNN reported that US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said about "two-thirds of pre-conflict traffic," or about 14 million barrels a day, is moving through the Strait of Hormuz despite renewed fighting, while Wright said weekly averages show just under 7 million barrels flow through the waterway a day.
The BBC also said the UN’s nuclear watchdog called for restraint while noting a site struck in Iran was "in the very early stages" and contained no nuclear material during its last visit.
In the region, AP said Kuwait’s power and desalination plant was attacked again and that Israel warned missiles launched toward Jordan could cause fire to spill over into Israeli territory for the first time in weeks.
