The American soldiers killed in a suicide drone strike at a US base in Jordan are 24-year-old Specialist Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 23-year-old Specialist Breonna Moffett and Sgt. William Rivers, 46.
The drone strike hit a base in the northeast of the country called Tower 22 near the Syrian border late Saturday, leaving three people dead and at least 34 others injured.
Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said all three soldiers were assigned to the 718th Engineer Company, a U.S. Army Reserve unit based at Fort Moore, Georgia.
Sanders' father, Shawn Sanders, said on Facebook: “Our family would like to thank you for the respect you have for Kennedy.” “Munchkin will be missed by many.”
Her mother, Oneida Oliver-Sanders, said: “I just can't believe I'll never be able to hug and kiss my baby again.” Life is so unfair. I just want my baby.'
Specialist Breonna Moffett, 23, of Savannah, Georgia, was identified as one of the soldiers killed in the drone strike
One of the American soldiers killed in a suicide drone strike at a US base in Jordan has been identified as Kennedy Ladon Sanders (pictured).
The drone strike hit a US outpost in the northeast of the country called Tower 22 near the Syrian border late Saturday evening, leaving at least 34 others injured
The Waycross government said on Facebook: “The city is deeply saddened by the death of Kennedy Ladon Sanders, who gave her life in service to our country.”
“We extend our deepest condolences to her family and friends during this difficult time.” In honor of her sacrifice, the city lowered our flags to half-mast today. “We are also working on additional ways to honor Kennedy and her service.”
“Our thoughts and prayers are with their loved ones as they mourn this terrible loss.”
Sanders graduated from Ware County High School in 2017.
Moffett's mother, Regina RaMo, said, “This is one of the saddest days of my life.” It is with a heavy heart that I must say that my angel, my firstborn, will be with GOD today. The pain will never go away and my life has changed forever.
“I will never cook your favorite meal again, we will never talk on the phone again, and I will never see you walk through my front door again.” Breonna Moffett was killed this morning. Just know that a part of my heart and soul will always be missing. I love you baby. Sleep calmly. I will always be my firstborn.'
The city of Waycross will lower its flags to half-staff to honor Sanders' sacrifice
Family members of the 24-year-old Waycross, Georgia native confirmed that Sanders was one of the soldiers killed in the attack. The other two have not been identified
Sanders' mother Oneida Oliver-Sanders said: “I just can't believe I'll never be able to hug and kiss my baby again.” Life is so unfair. I just want my baby'
Her father, Shawn Sanders, said on Facebook: “Our family would like to thank you for the respect you have for Kennedy.” “Munchkin will be missed by many”
Sanders graduated from Ware County High School in 2017
As of Sunday morning, Iran – the main backer of the anti-Israel group Hezbollah – and its proxies were the main suspects, officials said.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that the US failed to stop the attack because the enemy drone was approaching its target at the same time as a US drone was returning to base, leaving the two confused.
Modern military aircraft, naval vessels and ground vehicles are equipped with technologies known as Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) transponders, which identify “friendly” vehicles.
It is unclear whether the system used at the base in Jordan malfunctioned or whether human error was involved.
According to US officials, the suicide drone was launched from Iraq by a Tehran-backed militia and hit the base near the Iraq-Syria border.
President Joe Biden vowed “we will respond” to a suicide drone strike that killed three U.S. soldiers in Jordan late Saturday evening.
Biden issued a statement on Sunday mourning the loss of the slain service members – the latest fatality amid ongoing unrest in the Middle East.
“Today, America’s heart is heavy.” “Last night, three U.S. service members were killed — and many injured — in an unmanned drone strike on our forces stationed in northeastern Jordan, near the Syrian border,” Biden said.
“While we are still gathering the facts of this attack, we know that it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq.”
He added that the three fallen soldiers “embodyed the very best of our nation” and said they “put their own safety at risk for the safety of their fellow Americans and our allies and partners with whom we work in the fight against terrorism “.
“It is a fight we will not give up,” declared the 81-year-old Biden.
While the militants responsible were not named, the statement confirmed that the attack was the work of anti-Western jihadists operating somewhere in the region.
Moffett's mother, Regina RaMo, said, “This is one of the saddest days of my life.” It is with a heavy heart that I must say that my angel, my firstborn, will be with GOD today.
All three soldiers were assigned to the 718th Engineer Company, a U.S. Army Reserve unit based at Fort Moore, Georgia
The suicide attack comes as conflict continues to escalate in the war-torn region, with the war between Israel and Hamas terrorists still ongoing in Gaza and Iran currently conducting airstrikes with US ally Pakistan.
As of Sunday, both countries have a host of Iran-aligned militias, including Hezbollah and several other Shiite militant groups.
Since the Syrian war in 2011, Iran has also supported several Palestinian terrorist groups based in the Gaza Strip, as well as various terrorist groups in Bahrain and elsewhere in the Middle East.
In 2019, the nuclear-capable country recognized its armed forces' involvement in the conflicts in Iraq and Syria, prompting the US to designate the Iranian army as a foreign terrorist organization.
Regional militants and proxy groups are also known to deny Iran conducts such attacks and shield it from responsibility for its destabilizing policies.
The country is also currently engaged in an artillery game with its own neighbor Pakistan, one of NATO's key allies in the Middle East.
Just last week, the Pakistani air force launched retaliatory strikes on two suspected militant positions in Iran, days after an Iranian airstrike killed two children at home.
The airstrikes in Sistan and Balochistan province killed at least seven people – and heightened pre-existing tensions between the two nations and the region as a whole.
A few weeks ago, Pakistan recalled its ambassador from Tehran over Iran's attacks on Tuesday in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province. Iran claimed it targeted bases of a militant Sunni separatist group.
The attack was strongly condemned by Pakistan, which denounced the attack as a “flagrant violation” of its airspace and said it killed two children.
If Marhamati's account of the victims is correct, the country has repeated Pakistan's crime of killing minors at least twice.
As the Iranians continue to assess the full extent of the attack, the war rages on more than a thousand miles west in Israel.
Another 1,000 miles southwest, the U.S. carried out four new strikes in Yemen, targeting anti-ship ballistic missiles used by another Iranian-backed rebel group, the Houthis.
An outspoken enemy of both the US and Israel, Iran is currently training the Hezbollah militia group (here in Baghdad in 2019), which has been trying to join the Palestinian cause for years. The group has not been named as responsible for Saturday's attack
Earlier this month, shortly after Iran's attack on Pakistani soil, the group warned that British and American ships in the Red Sea had now become “legitimate targets” given the state of the larger conflict.
Since then, the Houthis have sporadically attacked ships in the region, with attacks increasing recently.
In response, the US launched Operation Prosperity Guardian – an international coalition to protect the region, in which many other countries, including Spain and the United Kingdom, took part.
According to reports, 1,200 merchant ships have sailed through the sea since the operation began in December, but none were hit by drone or missile attacks until the first phase of Sunday's attack, when militants attacked the Hangzhou with multiple missiles.
Sunday's attack shows the group's continued determination to support Hamas, which Israel recently pledged to continue trying to eradicate.