Just one day into the war with Iran, the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in the attacks launched by the US and Israel. His death was both celebrated and mourned by Iranians, whom US President Donald Trump urged to “take back” their country.
But the coordinated attacks that were launched on Saturday have also yielded hundreds of other casualties — among them at least six American service members. Their deaths are a sobering detail in a conflict that the Trump administration has said could last for weeks, while officials have warned that more US casualties are expected.
On Tuesday evening, federal officials identified four of the US victims as Army Reserve members who were killed on Sunday during an unmanned aircraft system attack in the Shuaiba port in Kuwait. The attack is under investigation.
The four named had all been assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command in Des Moines. They were Capt. Cody A. Khork and Sgts. Nicole M. Amor, Declan J. Coady and Noah L. Tietjens. The two other service members who were killed have not yet been identified.
As family and friends grappled with the news of their loved ones’ deaths on Tuesday, the department of defence praised the soldiers for their "defence of our nation".
“Their sacrifice, and the sacrifices of their families, will never be forgotten,” Lt. Gen. Robert Harter, the chief of Army Reserve and the commanding general of US Army Reserve Command, said in a statement.
Noah L Tietjens
Raised in a military family, Sgt. First Class Noah L. Tietjens joined the Army in the early 2000s and had completed at least four tours in countries including Kuwait and Iraq, said his twin brother, Nicholas.
He had proven himself to be a "great leader", Nicholas said, and was three months away from wrapping up his deployment in Kuwait. “He just wanted to get there, and get it over with, and get back,” his brother said.
Sergeant Tietjens left behind a wife, Shelly, and a teenage son, Dylan. The three had taken up martial arts together and were constant figures at Martial Arts International in their hometown, Bellevue, Nebraska.
Cody A Khork
From an early age, Capt. Cody A. Khork "felt a calling to serve his country", his family said in a statement. Captain Khork, a resident of Lakeland, Florida, enlisted as a multiple launch rocket system/fire direction specialist in the National Guard in 2009.
“He was deeply patriotic and took great pride in serving something greater than himself,” the family said.
The department of defence said Captain Khork commissioned as a military police officer in the Army Reserve in 2014. He deployed to Saudi Arabia in 2018, Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, in 2021, and Poland in 2024.
He had been honoured numerous times over the years for his achievements, earning multiple awards, including the Meritorious Service Medal and Army Commendation Medal.
Nicole M Amor
Sgt. First Class Nicole M. Amor’s recent deployment to Kuwait, after nearly 20 years in the military, was likely going to be her last, her brother Derek Hoff said on Tuesday.
Sergeant Amor, a resident of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, seemed to be at a crossroads before she left in August, her brother said. Her 18-year-old son was graduating high school, and she did not want to miss more of her 9-year-old daughter’s childhood.
“She knew what she signed up for, and she did it because she had a job and a duty,” said Hoff, 42, of Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
Declan J Coady
The department of defence said in a statement that Sgt. Declan J. Coady (posthumously promoted from specialist), was a resident of Des Moines, and enlisted in the Army Reserve in 2023 as an Army information technology specialist.
He had been awarded the Army Service Ribbon, National Defence Service Ribbon and the Overseas Service Ribbon.
New York Times News Service