President Trump says Iran’s recent attacks are “in memory of” fallen US soldiers
President Donald Trump said the attack on Iran was “in memory” of American soldiers killed in the Middle East over the weekend.
Two U.S. soldiers were killed in Jordan, raising the confirmed U.S. military death toll in the war with Iran to 17, the Pentagon announced on July 19.
The soldiers were identified as Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Army Lt. Cmdr. Isabella Gonzalez, 19, of Carrollton, Texas. Their deaths are the latest in a conflict that has claimed American lives across the Middle East since March, with President Donald Trump saying that America’s military operations have “damaged Iran very severely” and that there is “very little left” militarily.
Immediately after announcing the death toll, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it had launched additional strikes against Iran.
“This attack will continue to degrade Iran’s military capabilities that can be used to attack commercial vessels and civilian seafarers transiting the Strait of Hormuz,” CENTCOM said in a post on X.
President Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews on July 19 that Iran is militarily weakened after months of attacks by the United States and Israel.
President Trump said of the fallen soldiers, “Those great people, these great patriots, were fighting to keep Iran from having nuclear weapons.” “Iran has suffered very serious damage.”
How many American military personnel died in the war with Iran?
The deaths of Feehan and Gonzalez make the 17th U.S. service member killed since the conflict began in February.
The first death occurred on March 1, a day after the United States and Israel launched an operation against Iran that targeted military and political leaders and struck more than 1,250 locations across the country.
Iranian drone attack hits Kuwait’s Shuaiba port, killing six soldiers. Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth later said an Iranian missile had penetrated U.S. air defenses and struck a fortified tactical operations center.
Those killed were:
- Major Geoffrey O’Brien, 45 years old
- Captain Cody A. Koch, 35 years old
- Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert M. Marzan, 54 years old.
- Sergeant 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, 39 years old
- Sergeant 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens, 42 years old
- Sergeant Declan J. Cody, 20 years old
The next casualty was March 6, when Maj. Solfrey Davius, 46, died of unknown causes while stationed at Camp Buehling in Kuwait, according to the New York National Guard.
Two days later, Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, died from injuries sustained during the March 1 attack on Saudi Arabia’s Prince Sultan Air Base.
Six more soldiers killed in crash over Iraq
Another fatal incident for the US military during the war occurred on March 12th. A KC-135 refueling tanker crashes after a mid-air collision over western Iraq.
CENTCOM said the collision was accidental and occurred in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury.
The six military personnel who died are:
- Major John “Alex” Kleiner, 33 years old
- Captain Ariana Savino, 31 years old
- Captain Seth Koval, 38 years old
- Captain Curtis Angst, 34 years old
- Technical Sergeant Ashley Pruitt, 34 years old
- Technical Sergeant Tyler Simmons, 28 years old
USA TODAY’s Terry Collins, Christopher Cann and Bart Jansen contributed to this report.
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Contact us at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow us at X @fern_cerv_.
