A U.S. service member who was missing is now believed to be dead following Iranian air strikes on a military base in Jordan last week.
The Department of Defense announced Tuesday that Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York, is believed to have been killed on Friday during Iranian attacks on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. Rampersad was assigned to 1st Battalion, 57th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air & Missile Defense Command.
"U.S. Central Command previously announced this Soldier as missing," the Defense Department said in a statement. "The Soldier status was updated to a Duty Status–Whereabouts Unknown and is believed to be deceased."
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Rampersad's death would bring the U.S. death toll in the Iran war to 18. Two other soldiers killed in Iranian attacks in Jordan were identified Monday as 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas. The U.S. military says nearly 100 service members have also been injured over the past two weeks, though the vast majority have returned to duty.
Earlier Tuesday, President Donald Trump gave no indication the U.S. would scale back attacks on Iran. He vowed the U.S. military will soon launch strikes on Iran's Pickaxe Mountain, a fortified underground facility the U.S. and Israel suspect could be used for nuclear activity. Trump admitted that while there is no hard evidence Iran is using the site for nuclear purposes, he said they "may have" stored centrifuges there.
"We'll be hitting that area very, probably pretty soon," Trump said. "There's not a thing they can do about it. You know, normally I wouldn't say that. If I thought they could do something about it, I would never say that. But we'll be hitting that area pretty soon, and very heavily."
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Hours later U.S. Central Command announced a new round of strikes against Iran for an 11th consecutive night, while Iran has continued targeting U.S. allies and bases in the Middle East. The ongoing escalation has essentially voided a memorandum of understanding agreed to by both countries to bring an end to the war.
The U.S. military has said the strikes are intended to degrade Iranian capabilities of attacking commercial vessels and civilian mariners transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Although Iran's military has been weakened by the strikes, it has continued to maintain control of the strait.
