Three US Army soldiers were killed and more than 30 service members were injured in a drone attack overnight on a small US outpost in Jordan, marking the first time US troops have been killed by enemy fire in the Middle East since the beginning of the Gaza war.
“We shall respond,” President Joe Biden said while speaking in South Carolina on Sunday. The killing of three Americans at Tower 22 in Jordan near the border with Syria is a significant escalation of an already-precarious situation in the Middle East. Officials said the drone was fired by Iran-backed militants and appeared to come from Syria. It is still being determined which militia group specifically is responsible.
US Central Command confirmed in a statement Sunday that three service members were killed and at least 34 injured in a one-way drone attack that “impacted at a base in northeast Jordan.” Eight injured service members were medically evacuated to receive higher-level care, CENTCOM said. The number of wounded is expected to rise as service members seek treatment for symptoms consistent with traumatic brain injury, two US officials said. Biden vowed Sunday to hold those responsible for the attack “to account,” saying that while facts are still being gathered, “We know it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq.”
“These service members embodied the very best of our nation: Unwavering in their bravery. Unflinching in their duty. Unbending in their commitment to our country — risking their own safety for the safety of their fellow Americans, and our allies and partners with whom we stand in the fight against terrorism. … Have no doubt – we will hold all those responsible to account at a time and in a manner our choosing.” Iran on Sunday denied any involvement in the attack, state news agency IRNA reported, citing the country’s permanent mission to the United Nations.
Tehran’s denial came after the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of a number of Iran-backed militias in the country, said in a statement Sunday it attacked a number of targets along the Jordan-Syria border, including Al-Rukban camp. The camp is in close proximity to the US outpost Tower 22. The statement, posted to the Islamic Resistance’s Telegram channel, came before the US announced the death of the three service members. Speaking at a church in South Carolina later Sunday, Biden asked for a moment of silence to honor the service members.
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