A U.S. service member passed away Saturday night, days after being wounded in an Iranian attack on American forces in Saudi Arabia, U.S. Central Command said.
CENTCOM announced the death of the service member on Sunday afternoon, saying that the American was “seriously wounded at the scene of an attack on U.S. troops in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on March 1.” They are the seventh American service member to die during Operation Fury, the U.S. military’s name for combat operations against Iran.
According to U.S. military policy, the identity of the person killed is being withheld until 24 hours after their next of kin is informed. CENTCOM also did not specify where in Saudi Arabia the service member was wounded and how many others were hurt in the attack at that location. Iran has repeatedly targeted locations in Saudi Arabia since the war started, firing munitions at several sites in the country, including the capital of Riyadh and the Prince Sultan Air Base nearby, where U.S. forces operate from.
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At least 18 Americans were reported wounded in the region from Iran’s retaliatory strikes over the previous weekend, CENTCOM said last week. Six Army Reserve troops from the 103rd Sustainment Command were killed in an attack on a facility in Kuwait. Initially three were reported killed, while a fourth passed away from their injuries. The remains of two more were then recovered.
The bodies of the six killed in Kuwait arrived back in the United States on Saturday. The dignified transfer took place at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and was attended by President Donald Trump, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, among other top officials.
The war with Iran is now in its ninth day, with CENTCOM reporting that it struck more than 3,000 targets since the start of hostilities on Feb. 28. Trump is now calling for the “unconditional surrender” of Iran.
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