Two U.S. service members were killed and unidentified human remains were recovered while searching for a third service member reported missing after Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in Jordan on July 17, U.S. Central Command said Sunday.
Centcom said military personnel found the remains at the site of Friday’s attack and that an examination is underway to determine whether they belong to the missing service member.
Four U.S. service members were medically evacuated to Jordanian hospitals and have since been discharged, and other personnel who were evaluated for minor injuries have returned to duty.
Centcom said, "Out of respect for the families, Centcom will withhold additional information, including the identities of the fallen warriors, until 24 hours after the next of kin have been notified."
At least two Iranian ballistic missiles struck the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, which hosts U.S. troops and fighter jets, and videos on social media showed impact and heavy smoke.
Jordan's military said it intercepted 10 Iranian missiles fired into its airspace overnight and reported no damage.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had destroyed at least two U.S. fighter aircraft early on Saturday at Al-Azraq base in Jordan, according to Iranian state media; Centcom declined to add further details when contacted.
Centcom said Sunday that the U.S. death toll in the conflict has risen to 18 after a U.S. service member was killed Saturday in northern Iraq during the controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian one-way attack drone. A second service member suffered a minor injury and remains under medical care.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote on X: "Godspeed, heroes. Their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve."
Following the deaths of two U.S. service members in a strike on a base in Jordan, U.S. forces launched a new round of airstrikes against Iran Saturday evening at the direction of President Trump, Centcom said, marking the eighth straight night of strikes since ceasefire talks broke down. Centcom said the strikes are designed to further degrade Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and swiftly punish Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces who launched attacks against American service members in Jordan last night.
Six service members were killed in an Iranian attack on a base in Kuwait in March, six were killed when a refueling plane crashed in Iraq in March, and one was killed in an Iranian strike on the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.
Hostilities between the U.S. and Iran have re-escalated over the past week, with the U.S. reimposing a blockade on Iranian ports, Tehran striking U.S. allies in the Gulf including Jordan, and declaring the Strait of Hormuz closed.