The attack marked the first American military deaths attributed to direct Iranian fire since the war’s opening days as fighting intensified around the Strait of Hormuz and across the Persian Gulf.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.
Two U.S. service members were killed and another remained missing Saturday after Iranian ballistic missiles and drones targeted a military base in Jordan, according to the U.S. military.
The troops were struck Friday while American and partner forces were defending the installation from the incoming attack. Their names were not immediately released.
Four additional service members were evacuated to hospitals in Jordan for treatment and later discharged.
The fatalities were the first U.S. troop deaths attributed to direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the conflict. Sixteen American service members have now been killed since the war began, while more than 430 have been wounded.
U.S. officials also acknowledged that 13 additional service members — 10 Army soldiers and three Navy sailors — had been injured since Monday. Officials did not provide details about those injuries.
The announcement followed a warning attributed to Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who said the United States would face “unforgettable lessons” if American attacks against Iran continued.
Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since the war began, also described President Donald Trump’s signature as “worthless and invalid” in remarks read aloud on Iranian state television.
The message came hours after Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi announced that Tehran was suspending its commitments under an interim agreement signed approximately one month earlier.
The agreement had been intended to create a path toward permanently ending the fighting.
Gharibabadi accused Washington of violating the terms of the arrangement.
The United States has violated its commitments under the agreement, and Iran is “no longer implementing them,” he told Iranian state television.
Khamenei warned that the United States could face retaliation not only from Iran but also from Tehran-backed armed groups across the region, collectively described by Iranian officials as the “Axis of Resistance.”
No new developments were reported regarding international efforts to mediate an end to the war.
American and Iranian forces have continued exchanging attacks against military sites, transportation networks, energy facilities and other infrastructure. The confrontation has increasingly centered on control of the Strait of Hormuz, a strategically important waterway that carried approximately one-fifth of the world’s crude oil before the conflict.
Iran effectively shut the strait to commercial shipping after the war began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28. The disruption drove oil prices higher and strengthened Tehran’s position in subsequent negotiations.
Iran has demanded sole control over the waterway and has said commercial vessels should pay transit fees to Tehran. The international community has long regarded the strait as an international waterway.
Iranian forces have fired on ships in recent days, and crossings through the strait declined to a three-week low, according to an international shipping tracker.
U.S. Central Command said early Saturday that the seventh consecutive night of American strikes targeted “surveillance sites, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage, and maritime capabilities.”
Trump has renewed threats to strike Iranian power plants and bridges as part of an effort to pressure Tehran into loosening its control over the strait.
The United States also reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports during the past week in an effort to prevent the country from exporting crude oil.
Regional energy producers have increasingly relied on pipelines to bypass the strait, but existing pipeline capacity has not been sufficient to compensate for the decline in maritime shipments.
The widening campaign has also placed civilians, energy systems and drinking-water infrastructure at growing risk.
Kuwait reported some of the most serious damage from Iranian attacks Saturday. A water desalination plant and an oil facility were struck, according to Kuwaiti authorities and the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation. Neither identified the locations.
Several people were injured at the oil facility. A fire at the desalination plant forced multiple power-generation units offline.
The strike marked the second attack on a Kuwaiti desalination facility in two days. The desert nation relies on desalinated water for approximately 90% of its drinking supply.
Several firefighters and a worker were also injured while responding to two separate fires caused by Iranian strikes, according to the Kuwait Fire Force.
Kuwait temporarily closed its airspace because of missile threats. Kuwait Airways later announced that most flights arriving at or departing from the capital were being rescheduled.
Elsewhere in the region, Iraqi authorities said attack drones were intercepted over Irbil.
Jordan’s state-run Petra news agency reported that the kingdom’s air-defense systems shot down Iranian missiles. Warning sirens sounded several times in Bahrain and during the morning in Saudi Arabia, according to those governments.
Jasem Mohamed al-Budaiwi, secretary general of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council, accused Iran of committing war crimes by striking civilian facilities and critical infrastructure.
American attacks also damaged Iranian water, transportation and electricity systems.
Iranian state television reported that U.S. airstrikes struck an electricity and desalination facility in southern Hormozgan province.
The state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported that the Bonji desalination plant was destroyed, interrupting drinking-water service to approximately 10,000 people. A second desalination facility on Qeshm Island, located inside the Strait of Hormuz, was also damaged.
Overnight attacks damaged two tunnels and a bridge along one of the principal highways leading to Bandar Abbas, Iran’s main port near the strait’s narrowest point, according to IRNA.
The news agency later reported that three bridges were struck Saturday, including one located along a route to Bandar Abbas.
Iran acknowledged attacks against its electrical infrastructure for the first time Friday. The Iranian Energy Ministry asked residents of southern provinces “experiencing extreme heat” to reduce their electricity use but did not identify the damaged facilities.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned countries hosting American forces that they should be “prepared to receive a corresponding response,” according to Iranian state television.
Iranian officials said U.S. attacks had killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 500 during the previous three weeks. The reported casualties included eight people killed Friday in a strike on a bridge.
The continued attacks have weakened the possibility of a near-term settlement and raised concerns about further damage to civilian services and the global economy.
Before the war began, Washington and Tehran had been negotiating over Iran’s nuclear program.
Trump is now facing increasing political pressure to conclude the conflict and prevent it from becoming the prolonged Middle Eastern war he had previously campaigned against.
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