Three U.S. service members were killed in action, and five more were seriously wounded during ongoing military operations against Iran, the U.S. military’s Central Command reported Sunday. This marks the first confirmed American casualties in the expanding conflict.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated in a message on the social media platform X that the casualties were part of Operation Epic Fury. This joint campaign by U.S. and Israeli forces targets Iranian military and government sites. The names of the three service members who died have not been released, as their families still need to be notified.
“As of 9:30 a.m. ET, March 1, three U.S. service members have been killed in action, and five are seriously wounded as part of Operation Epic Fury,” CENTCOM said. “Several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions and are being returned to duty. Major combat operations continue, and our response effort is ongoing.”
CENTCOM also said it would withhold further details “out of respect for the families,” noting that information about how or where the casualties occurred remains “fluid.”
CENTCOM Update
TAMPA, Fla. – As of 9:30 am ET, March 1, three U.S. service members have been killed in action and five are seriously wounded as part of Operation Epic Fury.
Several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions — and are in the process of being…
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 1, 2026
This announcement came as the conflict entered its second day after an initial wave of airstrikes launched Saturday by U.S. and Israeli forces. Those strikes followed a period of rising tensions with Tehran that reportedly led to the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in an airstrike, according to state media in Tehran.
President Donald Trump described the military action in an address on Saturday as necessary to counter what he called threats from the Iranian government. He pledged a “force that has never been seen before” if Iran continued its hostile actions.
Iranian officials responded with heavy missile and drone attacks across the Middle East, targeting American and allied positions. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have struck the USS Abraham Lincoln with ballistic missiles, but CENTCOM denied this, stating that the carrier was not hit and continued to operate normally.
CENTCOM’s report of American casualties came after U.S. officials previously denied Iranian claims that dozens of U.S. troops had been killed or that U.S. bases suffered major damage. On Saturday, CENTCOM disputed Tehran’s assertion that 50 U.S. service members had died, noting that there were “no reported U.S. casualties” at that time.
The conflict has quickly spread beyond Iranian borders, with reports of Iranian missile and drone attacks on U.S. bases and allied countries in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait. Iranian strikes also hit civilian infrastructure in the region, leading to broader instability.
In Iran, state media reported significant civilian casualties from the strikes, including the deaths of many students in an attack on a girls’ school in the south. Iranian authorities have vowed to retaliate and expressed their determination to resist foreign military pressure.
The coming days are expected to be critical, with military operations continuing as world leaders evaluate the potential for further escalation. Trump’s decision to authorize strikes and the toll of U.S. casualties may intensify discussions in Washington and abroad over the goals and effects of the offensive.
