Pentagon identifies four US troops killed in Iran war

The Pentagon is shown with the Washington Monument in the background on February 28, 2026 in Washington, DC. (FILE/AFP)
Short Url
Updated 04 March 2026
Follow

Pentagon identifies four US troops killed in Iran war

  • The Pentagon on Tuesday identified four of six US troops killed in the Iran war after they were struck in a drone attack in Kuwait

WASHINGTON: The Pentagon on Tuesday identified four of six US troops killed in the Iran war after they were struck in a drone attack in Kuwait.
The Department of Defense said in a statement that the four service members were killed during an “unmanned aircraft system attack” in Kuwait’s Shuaiba port on Sunday.
It identified the four as Captain Cody Khork, 35, Sergeant Declan Coady, 20, Sergeant 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39, and Sergeant 1st Class Noah Tietjens, 42.
All four were “supporting Operation Epic Fury,” which the US has named its strikes against Iran, it added.
Two others who were also killed in action have not been publicly identified.
On Monday, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said a total of six US military personnel were killed since the start of the Iran war over the weekend.
“US forces recently recovered the remains of two previously unaccounted for service members from a facility that was struck during Iran’s initial attacks in the region,” CENTCOM said in a post on X.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned on Tuesday that they would unleash more intense attacks on the US and Israel as the war spread across the region.


Rescuers search for missing sailors after US sinks Iranian warship off Sri Lanka 

Healthcare workers carry the bodies of Iranian sailors who died in a US torpedo attack on their frigate IRIS Dena off Sri Lanka.
Updated 9 sec ago
Follow

Rescuers search for missing sailors after US sinks Iranian warship off Sri Lanka 

  • US submarine attack stretched battlefield beyond Middle East, furthest point since war began
  • At least 87 Iranian sailors were killed in the attack, while about 60 remain unaccounted for 

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan rescuers continued searching for dozens of missing sailors after a US submarine sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean, as a second Iranian vessel sailed close to the island nation’s territorial waters on Thursday. 

The Sri Lankan Navy has recovered at least 87 bodies and rescued 32 people after responding to a distress call on Wednesday morning from an Iranian frigate, the IRIS Dena, which was sunk by a torpedo fired by a US submarine. 

A second Iranian vessel — reportedly carrying about 100 people onboard — was heading towards Sri Lanka’s territorial waters on Thursday, said Nalinda Jayatissa, media minister and Cabinet spokesperson. 

“The government is taking necessary interventions to ensure the safety of those on board,” he told parliament. 

“Sri Lanka is committed to international peace, particularly peace in the Indian Ocean. We are acting according to international law and on humanitarian grounds to safeguard regional stability.” 

IRIS Dena, an Iranian vessel with a crew of about 180, was sailing in international waters as it returned from the International Fleet Review 2026, a naval exercise organized by India in the Bay of Bengal, when it was torpedoed. 

The strike was the first use by the US of a torpedo against an enemy ship in combat since the Second World War. Pete Hegseth, the US defense secretary, confirmed the sinking of the Iranian warship by an American submarine in the Indian Ocean, describing it as a “quiet death.” 

The sinking of IRIS Dena came as the US and Israel continued to launch air strikes on Iran after killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and senior Iranian officials on Saturday, as Tehran responded with counterstrikes against US bases in the Gulf region. 

The attack off Sri Lanka’s coast, thousands of kilometers away from Tehran, has stretched the battlefield beyond the Middle East, its furthest point since the war began. At least 17 Iranian naval vessels have been sunk since last weekend, according to US Adm. Brad Cooper, who leads the US military’s Central Command. 

Authorities at the National Hospital in Galle told Arab News that the rescued Iranian sailors were “out of danger.” One of those rescued remained in the intensive care unit, while most of them were treated for fractures and chest pain. 

“They were sleeping at the time of the blast,” said a source at the hospital, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. 

“There is a language barrier. We find it difficult to communicate with the patients properly and have sought assistance from the Iranian Embassy in Colombo.” 

Iran has requested the repatriation of the deceased Iranian sailors, according to Deputy Health Minister Hansaka Wijemuni, who said that authorities are now making preparations to do so.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that IRIS Dena was struck in international waters without warning. 

“The U.S. has perpetrated an atrocity at sea, 2,000 miles away from Iran’s shores,” he wrote on X.

“Mark my words: The U.S. will come to bitterly regret (the) precedent it has set.”