The US military confirmed that a service member was killed in northern Iraq on Saturday following an Iranian attack, just a day after a strike on a base in Jordan left two American soldiers dead and another missing.
US Central Command (Centcom) said the soldier died during “a controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance” from a downed Iranian attack drone, BBC reports.
A second service member was wounded in the incident.
In its latest update, Centcom reported that “unidentified remains” had been recovered at the Jordanian base targeted on Friday. An examination process is underway to verify the remains.
The incidents come amid eight consecutive days of escalating US–Iran exchanges, with both sides accused of striking critical infrastructure.
Washington has reimposed its blockade of Iranian ports, while Tehran declared the Strait of Hormuz closed and targeted US allies after a preliminary ceasefire collapsed less than a month after it began.
The US military said its recent strikes were intended to “degrade Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping” in the strait and to “swiftly punish” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces it blamed for the Jordan attack. Verified footage from inside the Jordanian facility showed at least two impacts followed by an explosion.
The US death toll in the conflict has now reached 17, including an American Navy pilot declared dead earlier this month after going missing.
Iran’s health ministry reported that at least 50 people have been killed and more than 500 injured in US strikes over the past three weeks.
On Sunday, Iranian media said an under-construction nuclear power plant in Darkhoveyn, in the country’s southwest, and Qeshm Island were struck overnight. The UN’s nuclear watchdog urged restraint, noting the Darkhoveyn site was “in the very early stages” and contained no nuclear material during its last inspection.
Jordan’s military said it intercepted three Iranian missiles, while a fourth landed in a remote area. The announcement followed a US warning that the port of Aqaba could be targeted.
Jordan’s foreign ministry summoned Iran’s chargé d’affaires in Amman, demanding an immediate halt to what it called “unjustified and blatant Iranian attacks” and stressing that the country’s security was “a red line that cannot be crossed.”
Israel’s military reported launching interceptors to prevent missile debris from falling inside its territory after projectiles were fired toward Jordan. Fragments were later identified near the southern city of Eilat, close to the Jordanian border, with no damage or injuries reported.
