The U.S. military announced Sunday that a service member has now died of injuries they sustained during an Iranian attack on American troops stationed in Saudi Arabia on March 1.
The individual was identified as Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, of Glendale, Kentucky. He is the seventh U.S. service member to die since the U.S. and Israel began launching attacks on Iran.
CENTCOM UpdateTAMPA, Fla. – Last night, a U.S. service member passed away from injuries received during the Iranian regime’s initial attacks across the Middle East. The service member was seriously wounded at the scene of an attack on U.S. troops in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia…
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 8, 2026
President Donald Trump attended a dignified transfer to pay respects to six other U.S. soldiers killed in the war with Iran on Saturday. Trump was joined by first lady Melania Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and several other administration officials.
The service members were killed on March 1 in a drone strike at a U.S. military installation in Kuwait. They were members of the 103rd Sustainment Command based in Des Moines, Iowa.
The war with Iran is now in its second week, with no sign of ending anytime soon. On Saturday, Trump said Iran will be hit “very hard,” noting the country is under “serious consideration for complete destruction for certain death.”
"We knocked out their air force, we knocked out their communications and all telecommunications is gone," Trump said in a speech at a summit in Miami Saturday morning. "I don’t know how they communicate but I guess they will figure something out. It’s not working out too well and they’re bad people."
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Iran's foreign minister responded to Trump with a defiant statement of his own.
"If Mr. Trump seeks escalation, it is precisely what our Powerful Armed Forces have long been prepared for, and what he will get," Abbas Araghchi said.
