Another US soldier dies in northern Iraq

BarcelonaThe United States has bombed Iran for the eighth consecutive night this Sunday, and the Persian country has now set Jordan in its sights. The Jordanian army has reported intercepting three Iranian missiles, while another has fallen in a remote area in the south of the country. The attack has not caused "human casualties or material damage", according to military sources, but it has led the Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to summon the chargé d'affaires of the Iranian embassy in Amman to protest against "the brutal and unjustified Iranian attacks" against its territory, which have intensified in recent days. The Persian country has also bombed Kuwait again this Sunday for the second consecutive day. Its target has been a desalination and power plant.

In the north of Iraq, however, the United States has confirmed the death of another soldier during the controlled detonation of an Iranian device. For this same operation another soldier has also been injured, according to Centcom, the Central Command of the United States armed forces. This death is added to that of two more soldiers who lost their lives in Jordan in an attack by Iran this Friday. The United States Army has also reported finding unidentified remains of a person at the same location where the attack in Jordan occurred, but they are still verifying them. These are the first American casualties recorded in the conflict since the ceasefire was broken last week.

This Monday, in fact, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran announced attacks against United States troops and military assets in Jordan and Kuwait, and declared having "shot down dozens" of American troops, as part of the ninth day of hostilities between the two armies. They have claimed to have destroyed "20 shelters where child-killing American forces were stationed in the Al-Azraq region" – where an air base with troops and equipment is located – according to a statement from the Guard reported by the Tasnim agency, linked to the corps.

Credible threat

This Sunday morning, the United States embassy in Amman reported that, "in the face of a specific and credible threat," Jordan had evacuated Aqaba International Airport and its seaport, located at the southern tip of the country. In fact, Aqaba is Jordan's only coastal city on the Red Sea coast and is a strategic point where Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia converge.

A few hours later, however, the Jordanian government denied the American diplomatic legation's statement and assured that no evacuation had occurred. On March 2nd, however, the American State Department did order all non-essential employees and their families to leave the Arab country due to the risk to their safety.

The United States is sending more fighter jets to the Middle East, which suggests that Donald Trump's government could intensify the offensive against Iran, according to what the New York Times published this Sunday, based on sources from the same American administration. Specifically, F-16 fighters from its air force, originating from Germany, and F-35 stealth aircraft from the United Kingdom have been deployed to the region. More mid-air refueling aircraft are also expected to arrive.

In fact, on Saturday night, the United States attacked the Persian country again. The Iranian government has reported that American forces bombed the Darkhovin nuclear power plant, which is under construction. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is investigating the incident, although it rules out any radiological risk.