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The Pentagon has announced that Army Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, is “believed to have been killed” in a July 17 Iranian attack against Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, Jordan.
“The service member is ‘believed to be’ until the Armed Forces Medical Examiner can confirm her identity,” a Pentagon official told Task & Purpose. “AFMES will complete positive identification of the Soldier through fingerprints, dental records, and/or DNA.”
Two other active-duty soldiers were killed in the attack, which was part of a wider wave of strikes on installations in the Middle East used by American troops, part of days of back-and-forth fighting between the U.S. and Iran.
From Ozone Park, New York, Rampersad was initially listed as missing after Iranian drones and missiles targeted the base. U.S. military officials subsequently announced that an examination of unidentified remains found at the location of the attack was underway.
Rampersad’s status has been updated to “Duty Status–Whereabouts Unknown and is believed to be deceased,” the Defense Department announced on July 21. She was assigned to 1st Battalion, 57th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command at Ansbach, Germany.
“Today, we mourn the loss of Sgt. Angel Rampersad,” Brig. Gen. Glenn Henke, commanding general of the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, said in an Army news release. “We extend our deepest, most heartfelt condolences to her family and all those who are navigating this unimaginable loss. The 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command is grieving, and we will continue to support one another as we process this tragedy.”
U.S. military officials have previously confirmed the deaths of two other soldiers in the attack on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, was killed July 17, and 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, died July 18, according to a statement put out by the Department of Defense.
Gonzales, from Carrollton, Texas, was assigned to the same unit as Rampersad.
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Feehan, from Ewa Beach, Hawaii, was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 32nd Army Air Missile Defense Command at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Four other troops were injured in the attack at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base but were evacuated to hospitals in Jordan. Officials said Saturday that those troops were discharged and other personnel evaluated for minor injuries returned to duty.
The fatal strike came after the commander of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 5 died in a helicopter crash in the Arabian Sea earlier this month. In March, thirteen troops died during operations against Iran, including six airmen who died when their LC-135 refueling plane crashed in western Iraq.
A soldier was also killed on July 19 during the controlled detonation of a downed Iranian one-way attack drone’s ordnance in Erbil, Iraq. To date, a total of 18 U.S. service members have died while supporting operations against Iran, which began on Feb. 28, according to the Defense Department.
