The Pentagon has officially named the three United States service members who lost their lives in a drone attack on a military base in northeastern Jordan on January 28, 2024. The deceased have been identified as Sergeant William Jerome Rivers, 46, of Carrollton, Georgia; Specialist Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 24, of Waycross, Georgia; and Specialist Breonna Alexsondria Moffett, 23, of Savannah, Georgia.
The attack occurred at a logistics support base known as Tower 22, situated near the Syrian border. A one-way uncrewed aerial system impacted the container housing units where the service members were located, resulting in their deaths. In addition to the fatalities, more than 40 other service members sustained injuries, with eight requiring medical evacuation from Jordan to the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center. Some of these individuals are scheduled for further transport to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany for ongoing care.
Pentagon officials indicated that the attack bore the hallmarks of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militia group operating in Syria and Iraq. While a final attribution was pending, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh stated that Iran is ultimately responsible for supplying and supporting these groups that carry out such assaults. This incident marked the first time U.S. service members were killed in an attack in Jordan, and it occurred amidst a period of heightened tensions and over 150 attacks on U.S. facilities and personnel in Iraq and Syria since early October 2023.
The U.S. has been engaged in Operation Inherent Resolve, a mission focused on ensuring the defeat of ISIS. The service members killed were assigned to the 718th Engineer Company, 926th Engineer Battalion, 926th Engineer Brigade, based at Fort Moore, Georgia. The U.S. government has vowed to respond to the attack at a time and place of its choosing, following consultations between the President, the Secretary of Defense, and the national security team. The incident has drawn widespread condemnation and underscored the complex security environment in the Middle East.
The U.S. military has stated its commitment to responding to the attack, emphasizing that it does not seek a wider conflict with Iran but will take necessary actions to defend its forces. The Pentagon has reiterated that Iran bears responsibility for funding and equipping the militias responsible for these attacks.
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