US Central Command says the deaths came as American and partner forces defended against ballistic missile and drone attacks, with the conflict’s American toll now standing at 16.
Two US service members have been killed and a third is missing after Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in Jordan on Friday, American military officials have said. US Central Command (Centcom) confirmed that four others were medically evacuated to hospitals in Jordan before being discharged, while personnel with minor injuries have since returned to duty. The Pentagon has not named the dead, nor said where in the country the attack happened or how it unfolded. Jordan’s military had earlier reported intercepting 10 Iranian missiles fired into its airspace overnight, without recording any damage.
In a statement on Saturday, Centcom said: “Two US service members in Jordan were killed in action as US Central Command (Centcom) and partner forces defended against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. Additionally, one service member is currently missing.”
It added: “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.”
The American death toll in the conflict now stands at 16, after a US Navy pilot who went missing earlier this month was declared dead — the second time the figure has risen this week.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth paid tribute to the dead in a post on X, writing: “Godspeed, heroes. Their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve.”
Tehran claims US jets destroyed at airbase
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had destroyed at least two US fighter aircraft at the Al-Azraq base in Jordan early on Saturday, according to Iranian state media. The BBC put the claim to Centcom, which declined to provide further details.
A week of escalation on both sides
Friday marked a seventh consecutive night of American strikes on Iran, according to the US military, capping a week in which Washington reimposed a blockade on Iranian ports while Tehran hit US allies including Jordan and declared the Strait of Hormuz closed.
The human cost has continued to mount. Iranian state media, citing the country’s health ministry, reported that at least 50 people have been killed and more than 500 injured in US strikes over the past three weeks, while official figures show thousands have died across the Middle East since the US-Israeli war with Iran began on 28 February.
Both sides have also faced accusations of hitting critical infrastructure in recent days. Washington denied Iranian claims that it struck bridges, a train station and an airport earlier this week, insisting it had targeted only military sites — although BBC Verify confirmed an attack on a bridge in Hormozgan province. On Tuesday, President Trump threatened to strike Iran’s bridges and power plants next week unless Tehran returned to talks.
The Gulf Cooperation Council, meanwhile, accused Iran of deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure across the region. After Tehran said it had answered American strikes by hitting US allies in the Gulf on Saturday, Kuwait reported that a power plant and a water distillation plant had been struck. Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, who heads the council representing Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, said such attacks amounted to “war crimes”.
International law prohibits attacks on civilians and civilian areas, although civilian objects such as bridges or power plants can lose that protection in certain circumstances if they are used to support an enemy’s war effort.
Collapsed deal and warnings to Americans
The bloodshed follows the failure of a preliminary agreement between Washington and Tehran to end the war, which was signed in June but unravelled within a month.
On Saturday, the US Department of State issued a notice advising Americans in the region to “monitor the news for breaking developments”. It also urged “Americans worldwide to exercise increased caution”, adding: “Due to heightened tensions in the Middle East, the security environment remains complex with the potential for unforeseen escalation.”
Late on Saturday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said in a written statement that America’s “repeated breaches” of the agreement had “laid bare a fundamental truth: the signature of the US president is utterly worthless and devoid of credibility”.
Khamenei has not appeared in public since the attack that killed his father, the previous ayatollah, at the start of the war.
