Trump’s Iran war death toll climbs to 13 after all crew onboard US refueling plane died in crash
All six soldiers on the American refueling plane that crashed in Iraq on Thursday were killed.
US Central Command, which initially confirmed four deaths, said there was no enemy or friendly fire in friendly airspace causing the collision.
Thus, the number of American soldiers killed in conflicts in Iran increased to 13.
The second aircraft involved in the collision landed safely with minor damage to the tip of its tail.
“The circumstances of the incident are being investigated,” CentCom wrote in a statement about what appeared to be a fatal and unfortunate accident. The second plane that crashed in the air landed safely.
The identities of those who have recently died are withheld until next of kin are notified of their deaths in service.
After Operation Epic Rage began over the weekend of February 28, the United States announced that six U.S. soldiers were killed in Iranian drone strikes on a U.S. facility in Kuwait the day after the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
A seventh American soldier was added to this number due to the soldier injured in Iran’s attack on a US base in Saudi Arabia.
US Central Command has confirmed that all six military crew members on a refueling mission died in a mid-air collision in ‘friendly airspace’. Image of the US plane that survived the crash and landed safely with its tail damaged
Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Second Lady Usha Vance, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Middle East Special Representative Steve Witkoff and Attorney General Pam Bondi are seen at the honorable transfer ceremony held at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Saturday, March 7, 2026.
All six crew members on the KC-135 refueling plane died, but CentCom says it was not due to enemy or friendly fire. Pictured is the second aircraft with damage to the tip of its tail.
President Donald Trump acknowledged in a phone call with the Daily Mail earlier this month that more soldiers would die in the war against Iran. The confirmed death toll at the time of the call was three.
The Pentagon confirmed this week that 140 soldiers had been injured in the fighting so far, but claimed most of them were minor injuries and have since been resolved.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth struck a triumphant tone at Friday’s press conference.
‘Iran has no air defense’ Iran has no Air Force. Iran has no navy,” Hegseth insisted to a room full of reporters at the Pentagon. ‘Their missiles, missile launchers and drones are being destroyed or launched from the sky. Missile volume decreased by 90 percent.’
He insisted that the US was on track to ‘defeat, destroy and disable’ the Iranian military.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil passes, is still under siege, despite Hegseth saying “there is no need to worry” at the press conference.
According to AAA, gas prices in the U.S. have risen from a pre-war $2.90 to an average of $3.60 per gallon.
The Pentagon chief fumed at Friday’s press briefing that Iran continues to fire on ships trying to pass through the waterway that flows from the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman.
“This is not a Strait that we will allow to continue to be contested due to lack of commercial goods flow,” the Pentagon chief assured.
Army Reserve Major Jeffrey O’Brien (left), 45, and Chief Warrant Officer Robert M Marzan (right), 54
Captain Cody A Khork (left), 35, and Sergeant 1st Class Nicole M Amor, 39
Sergeant 1st Class Noah L Tietjens (left), 42, and Specialist Declan J Coady, 20
Sergeant Benjamin N. Pennington of Glendale, Kentucky, was killed March 1 during an Iranian attack on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.
Trump flew to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware last week for the dignified transfer of soldiers returning to US soil in coffins.
The six Americans killed on the second day of combat were Army reservists with the 103rd Sustainment Command, based in Des Moines, Iowa.
Nicole Amor (39), Cody Khork (35), Declan Coady (20), Robert Marzan (54), Jeffrey O’Brien (45) and Noah Tietjens (42) died in the war.
The seventh US soldier killed in the war was identified as 26-year-old Benjamin Pennington of Glendale, Kentucky. He was assigned to 1st Space Battalion, 1st Space Brigade at Fort Carson, Colorado.
Details about the last six deaths are expected to be released within the next 24 hours.
“They are wonderful people,” the president said of the deceased in a telephone interview with the Daily Mail this month. ‘And you know, unfortunately we expect that to happen. ‘It could happen constantly, it could happen again.’
Hegseth dared to appear in front of the camera amid rumors that the new Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei was ‘disfigured’ or even dead; These rumors were sparked by an Iranian television anchor reading a statement on state television, rather than the appearance of the new Supreme Leader himself.
Hegseth claimed that ‘Iran’s leadership is no better off.’ ‘Desperate and hiding, they retreated underground, cowering. That’s what mice do.”
“We know that the new so-called non-high leader is injured and possibly disfigured,” he added.
Iranian security chief Ali Larijani marches with crowds in Tehran on the last day of Ramadan on March 13, 2026. He claimed that Trump ‘did not realize’ that Iran was ‘mature and determined’ when he decided to attack.
Meanwhile, Iran lays claim to the country and maintains its leadership.
Iranian security chief Ali Larijani marched with crowds demonstrating against Israel in Tehran on the last day of Ramadan. He mocked Trump, claiming that the US President ‘doesn’t realize’ that Iran is ‘mature and determined’.
Iran launched new attacks on the International Financial Center in Dubai as explosions rocked the city and thick smoke rose above its skyline.
