Defense Ministry identifies three soldiers killed at a base in Jordan
The Defense Department on Monday identified three Army Reserve soldiers killed Sunday at a U.S. base in Jordan in what the Biden administration said was a drone strike by an Iranian-backed militia. The department said at least 34 other soldiers were injured in the attack.
The dead were Sgt. William Jerome Rivers, 46, of Carrollton, Ga.; Specialist Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 24, of Waycross, Georgia; and Specialist Breonna Alexsondria Moffett, 23, of Savannah, Georgia.
The soldiers, including two women, were assigned to the 718th Engineer Company, based at Fort Moore, Georgia – a team of soldiers trained to deploy on short notice to build roads, landing fields and protective earth berms for U.S. forces .
“On behalf of the Army Reserve, I share in the grief felt by their friends, family and loved ones,” said Army Reserve Chief Lt. Gen. Jody Daniels. “Their service and sacrifice will not be forgotten, and we are committed to supporting those left behind in the aftermath of this tragedy.”
In Jordan, the three were assigned to a remote desert logistics outpost called Tower 22, in the northeastern part of the country where the borders of Syria, Iraq and Jordan meet. According to the Pentagon's Central Command, the small installation is home to about 350 U.S. Army and Air Force troops.
U.S. forces have long used Jordan, strategically located near Iraq, Israel, the Palestinian territory of the West Bank, Saudi Arabia and Syria, as a launching point for operations. There are normally about 3,000 US troops stationed in the country.
The three killed Sunday are part of an often overlooked part of the military that delivers supplies, maintains buildings, builds roads and does other routine work while at risk of operating in hostile territory.
Sergeant Rivers was trained as an electrician, served in the Army Reserve for more than a decade and deployed to Iraq in 2018 fighting Islamic State militants, according to Army records.
Specialist Sanders and Specialist Moffett both enlisted in the Army Reserve in 2019 and were trained in operating heavy equipment such as road graders. Tower 22 was specialist Moffett's first deployment. Specialist Sanders had previously been deployed to an American outpost in Djibouti in 2021.
Families of the soldiers expressed their grief in social media posts that were widely shared by friends and relatives.
“This is one of the saddest days of my life,” Specialist Moffett's mother said in an interview Facebook post Sunday. “The pain will never go away and my life has been changed forever. I will never be able to cook your favorite food, we will never be able to talk on the phone again and I will never see you walk through my front door again.
The small community of Waycross, Georgia, issued a proclamation on Monday in honor of specialist Sanders. “Kennedy Sanders exemplified the highest ideals of honor, duty and selflessness,” it reads. “Her sacrifice reminds us of the deep gratitude we owe to those who selflessly serve our country.”