7th US service member dies in war with Iran, Pentagon says

Another US service member dies during Iran operation

Early reports this weekend indicate another U.S. service member has died amid ongoing military operations against Iran.

A seventh U.S. service member has died from injuries sustained during Iran’s initial wave of attacks across the Middle East, the Pentagon said Sunday. 

Here’s the latest:

7th US soldier dies

What we know:

On Monday, March 9, FOX News reported that Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, of Glendale, Kentucky, died of his wounds on Sunday after he was injured during "an enemy attack" on March 1 at Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, the Department of War announced.

Pennington was assigned to 1st Space Battalion, 1st Space Brigade, Fort Carson, Colorado. The department said the incident is under investigation.

The service member died Saturday from injuries sustained during a March 1 Iranian attack on U.S. troops in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. According to The Associated Press, the service member was an Army soldier.

A large plume of smoke rises over Tehran after explosions were reported in the city during the night on March 07, 2026 in Tehran, Iran. (Photo by Contributor/Getty Images)

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The first six soldiers who died were Army reservists killed in a March 1 attack on a command center in a Kuwaiti port. They are: 

• Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota.
• Capt. Cody Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Florida.
• Sgt. Declan Coady, 20, of Des Moines, Iowa.
• Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, 54, of Sacramento
• Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien, 45, of Waukee, Iowa.
• Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska

All six were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command based in Des Moines, Iowa. (Army Reserve Command Press Desk) 

All six were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command based in Des Moines, Iowa. President Trump attended the dignified transfer of their bodies at Dover Air Force Base Saturday morning. 

Iran war latest 

What's next:

Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Sunday to press ahead with the nine-day-old military operation, which has rippled across the region and appears to have no end in sight.

Netanyahu promises "surprises" in next phase of Iran war

Israel renewed its assault on southern Lebanon early Sunday, including targeting commanders of the Lebanese branch of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised "many surprises" for the next phase of the conflict.

At least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 300 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel have been killed, according to officials in those countries. 

LIVE UPDATES: US service member dies after Iranian attack in Saudi Arabia

The war has rattled global markets, disrupted air travel and left Iran’s leadership weakened by hundreds of Israeli and American airstrikes.

Click here for the latest updates on the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran. 

This story has been updated on Monday, March 9, 2026, to include the identity of the seventh soldier killed, which was reported by FOX News.