Seventh U.S. servicemember dies in action as part of Operation Epic Fury, Khamenei’s son named as Iranian successor, six killed in strike on drug-smuggling vessel and Medal of Honor to be awarded to Vietnam War hero.
1. A seventh service member has died in action as part of Operation Epic Fury against Iran, U.S. Central Command announced on Sunday. “The service member was seriously wounded at the scene of an attack on U.S. troops in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on March 1,” CENTCOM said in the statement, and died from the injuries on Saturday night. The identity will be withheld until 24 hours after next of kin notification. The service member was an Army soldier, according to an Associated Press report. Major combat operations continue, CENTCOM said.
2. Iran launched more attacks on Israel and Gulf countries Monday, hours after Iranian state TV said Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the country’s late supreme leader and long considered a contender, had been named his successor. Iran’s powerful paramilitary Revolutionary Guard answers to the supreme leader and the younger Khamenei will have a central say in the war strategy. Oil prices skyrocketed Monday, leading to more worries that higher energy costs will fuel inflation and lead to less spending by U.S. consumers, the main engine of the economy. Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index plunged as much as 7% in early Monday trading, while other Asian markets also tumbled.
3. The U.S. military said it killed six men Sunday in a strike on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the eastern Pacific Ocean as part of the Trump administration’s campaign against alleged traffickers. Sunday’s attack brought the death toll to at least 157 people since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls “narcoterrorists” in small vessels in early September. U.S. Southern Command said it targeted alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs. It posted a video on X that showed a small boat being blown up as it floated on the water.
4. The United States began a large military exercise with South Korea involving thousands of troops Monday while also waging an escalating war in the Middle East. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff has said about 18,000 Korean troops will take part in Freedom Shield, which runs through March 19. U.S. Forces Korea hasn’t confirmed the number of American troops participating in the training in South Korea. The allies’ combined exercise comes amid South Korean media speculation that Washington is relocating some assets from South Korea to support fighting against Iran.
5. More than 50 years after he hung beneath a bridge under enemy fire to stop a North Vietnamese armored invasion, the heroic actions of John Ripley are set to be recognized with the nation’s highest award for valor. As North Vietnamese tanks massed on the far side of the river in 1972, Ripley climbed onto the Dong Ha Bridge carrying explosives — knowing that if the bridge stood, the invasion could roll south. During the opening days of the Easter Offensive, Ripley hung from the steel girders of the Dong Ha Bridge in the northern part of South Vietnam, hauling hundreds of pounds of explosives across the structure and rigging them by hand as enemy forces advanced. When the charges detonated, the bridge collapsed into the river below, halting a massive North Vietnamese armored advance and buying critical time for South Vietnamese and U.S. forces to respond.
- Security