3 American troops killed, 25 injured in attack on Jordan base near Syria border

Three U.S. service members were killed and at least 25 others were injured in a drone attack on an outpost in northeast Jordan near the Syrian border, U.S. Central Command confirmed on Sunday.

But a senior U.S. defense official told Fox News the injury toll could rise to higher than 25 Americans. Most, if not all, of those injured and killed were Army soldiers based in northern Jordan near the Syrian border at a base known as Tower 22, which has been in support of the counter-ISIS mission for year, the official said.

Some of the 25-plus injured have been medically evacuated from the base, likely to Landstuhl in Germany, according to the official. It is not clear if they were hit while sleeping in the residential compound at the base. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is actively engaged in discussions taking place at the White House about how to respond.

“On Jan. 28, three U.S. service members were killed and 25 injured from a one-way attack UAS that impacted at a base in northeast Jordan, near the Syria border. As a matter of respect for the families and in accordance with DoD policy, the identities of the servicemembers will be withheld until 24 hours after their next of kin have been notified,” CENTCOM said in a statement.

“Updates will be provided as they become available,” the statement added.

The White House said President Biden was briefed Sunday morning by Austin, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer about the attack, which marked a significant escalation as it’s the first time U.S. troops have been killed by enemy fire in the Middle East since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7.

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