Three U.S. service members were killed and five seriously wounded as the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran, U.S. Central Command said Sunday morning.
Several others sustained minor injuries from shrapnel and concussions, but will return to duty, the Pentagon said. The identities of the dead and wounded have not been made public.
Central Command did not say how the service members were killed.
“The situation is fluid, so out of respect for the families, we will withhold additional information, including the identities of our fallen warriors, until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified,” CENTCOM said in a statement.
The U.S. and Israel launched sweeping airstrikes on Iran on Saturday, killing Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s supreme leader for nearly four decades. Iran has vowed retaliation and hit several U.S. military bases across the region, many in Persian Gulf countries.
President Donald Trump told CNBC’s Joe Kernen on Sunday that the operation in Iran is “moving along very well, very well — ahead of schedule.”
In a phone call with MS NOW on Sunday, Trump called the celebrations in the streets of Iran “fantastic” following the killing of Khamenei.
The exchange of hostilities comes after weeks of fragile negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over Iran’s nuclear operations.
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Erum Salam is breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian and is a graduate of Texas A&M University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Follow her on X, Bluesky and Instagram.
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