Trump honours four US troops killed in Iran conflict at Dover transfer

Donald Trump attended a dignified transfer at Dover for four American service members killed in Jordan and Iraq. The ceremony underscored the human cost of the US-Iran war as Washington vows further retaliation.

In Short

• The ceremony at Dover returned four flag-draped transfer cases to families
• Two soldiers died in Jordan attacks, another remained missing until recovery
• A fourth soldier was killed in Iraq by an Iranian drone

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday honoured four American service members killed in the Middle East as their remains were returned to their families during a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Trump saluted as the flag-draped transfer cases were escorted off the aircraft, in what is considered one of the most sombre duties of a US president.

It was the third such transfer Trump has attended since the war with Iran began in February. He was due to meet the families in private, and told reporters on his way to Dover that the ritual was "one of the hardest things to do as a president". Asked what he would say to the families, he said: "We love you. We love your child." He added, "There's no games, there's no nothing - that's their child. And all you can do is throw out your heart."

Trump was accompanied by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Gen Dan Caine, Senator Thom Tillis and Senator Chris Coons. During the transfer, the remains of the fallen troops, carried in transfer cases draped with the American flag, were moved from the military aircraft to waiting vehicles that would take them to the base mortuary facility, where they are prepared for their final resting place.

Two of the service members killed in Iranian missile and drone attacks in Jordan were returned during the transfer. The remains of a third service member believed to be the soldier missing after the Jordan attacks were also returned, along with the remains of a soldier killed in Iraq in the detonation of an Iranian drone.

The Defence Department identified the soldiers killed in Jordan as Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas. The soldier who disappeared after the Jordan attacks was identified as Angel S Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York. The soldier killed in Iraq was identified as Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, of Spring Lake, North Carolina.

The White House said Feehan's family would travel on Air Force One later on Wednesday as Trump heads to Georgia for an event on his administration's investment accounts for children. Trump had earlier said the soldiers died while protecting America and other nations from Iran. "We feel very badly, but you know, those great people, those great patriots were out there fighting so that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon," he told reporters on Sunday. He added that the US was striking Iran "in honour" of the fallen troops.

The US has carried out multiple retaliatory strikes against Iran as an interim agreement to end the war has faltered. Trump said on Monday that every time Iran kills an American soldier, "they will pay for that killing many times over!" Since the war began on February 28, 18 US service members have been killed.

On Tuesday, Trump said most of the incoming fire in Jordan had been intercepted, but some had got through. "They did slip something through in Jordan," he said. "If we had other operators, you know, it would have not happened, unfortunately." He added: "We've stopped almost everything, but when you let other people do your job with the United States - we let other people do the job - and sometimes it doesn't work out so well." He did not elaborate, and it was not immediately clear who he was referring to in connection with the protection of US forces in Jordan.

Trump had attended two previous dignified transfers since the start of the war, most recently in March. Feehan, a first lieutenant killed on Saturday, will be posthumously promoted to captain and awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge. He was assigned from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defence Command. In a statement, his family said their hearts were shattered by his loss and remembered Feehan, known as "Tivo", as someone who "packed in more living" in his 25 years than most do in a lifetime. "He chased adventure relentlessly," the statement said. "He believed deeply in the power of military service, especially what it builds in a person: discipline, leadership, character." The family said he had planned to marry his fiance and attend law school after his deployment, and that they are starting a scholarship in his name.

Gonzales, who was killed on Friday, was a private with the 10th Army Air and Missile Defence Command in Ansbach, Germany. School officials said she graduated last year from Hebron High School in Carrollton, near Dallas. Rampersad, a sergeant believed to have been killed in Friday's attacks, was assigned to the 57th Air Defence Artillery Regiment, 52nd Air Defence Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air and Missile Defence Command in Ansbach. Swinton, a sergeant killed on Sunday, will receive a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge, and will be promoted to staff sergeant. He enlisted in the Army in 2017 and was assigned to the 55th Air Defence Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defence Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg. The ceremony at Dover marked the return of the four service members as Trump and his administration continued to link their deaths to the wider conflict with Iran.

With PTI Inputs

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