Us Service Members Killed: Military Says 3 Dead, 5 Seriously Wounded
Three American service members have been killed and five others seriously wounded during the U. S. attacks on Iran, the military announced Sunday. The announcement marked the first American casualties in a major offensive that President Donald Trump said could likely lead to more losses in the coming weeks.
Us Service Members Killed Details
U. S. Central Command, which oversees the Middle East, announced the deaths in a post on X but did not say when and where they occurred as the Islamic Republic retaliates over the joint strikes by the U. S. and Israel. The post said "several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions" and were going to return to duty. Central Command described the situation "as fluid" and said it would withhold the identities of the service members who were killed for 24 hours after their families were notified.
Trump's statements and videos
In a roughly six-minute video posted to his Truth Social platform on Sunday afternoon, Trump said, "We pray for the full recovery of the wounded and send our immense love and eternal gratitude to the families of the fallen. " He added, "And sadly, there will likely be more before it ends. That's the way it is. Likely be more, but we'll do everything possible where that won't be the case. " In that video, Trump called those killed "true American patriots who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, even as we continue the righteous mission for which they gave their lives. " He said the U. S. will avenge their deaths.
Earlier interviews and warnings
Trump earlier told the Daily Mail in a phone interview Sunday that the U. S. troops who were killed were "great people. " "You know, we expect that to happen, unfortunately, " Trump told the newspaper. "Could happen continuous — it could happen again. " He also told the Daily Mail that he believes the conflict could last for "four weeks or so. " He had previously warned that American troops could be killed or injured in the operation, saying in a video address released early Saturday: "The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost, and we may have casualties. That often happens in war. But we're doing this not for now. We're doing this for the future. "
Iran's counterattacks and claims
Following the U. S. -Israeli strikes that killed Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other leaders, Iran's counterattacks have struck U. S. bases in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has threatened to launch its "most intense offensive operation" ever targeting Israeli and American military installations. The U. S. military denied Iranian claims that the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier was struck with ballistic missiles, saying on X that the "missiles launched didn't even come close. "
U. S. deployments and naval movements
Before the strikes, Trump had built up the largest U. S. military presence in the Middle East in decades. The arrival of the Lincoln and three accompanying guided-missile destroyers at the end of January bolstered the number of warships in the region. The world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, and four accompanying destroyers later were dispatched from the Caribbean Sea to head to the Middle East.
