Four American soldiers killed in Kuwait remembered as smart, kind, and amazing

More information has surfaced about four American service members who lost their lives in a drone strike at Kuwait’s Shuaiba port on Sunday, marking the first U.S. deaths recorded since the United States and Israel began their military operation against Iran on Saturday.

All four were members of the 103rd Sustainment Command based in Des Moines, Iowa, and were “supporting Operation Epic Fury,” the Defense Department said, noting that they “were killed on March 1, 2026, in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, during a drone attack.”

The Pentagon released the names on Tuesday night: Capt. Cody A. Khork, 35; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, 39; Sgt. Declan J. Coady, 20; and Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens, 42.

Two additional service members who died have not yet been publicly named.

The episode is still being examined.

Since Saturday, when the United States and Israel launched their campaign against Iran, American and Israeli forces have conducted extensive strikes throughout Iran, including an attack on the residence of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed that day. Iran answered with retaliatory fire, firing missiles toward Israeli and U.S. installations in the area, including sites in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

When unveiling the operation, President Donald Trump asserted that his administration was “taking every possible step to minimize the risk to U.S. personnel in the region.” He added that “the lives of courageous American heroes may be lost, and we may have casualties,” noting that “that often happens in war.”

On Tuesday night, the U.S. Army Reserve stated that the fallen soldiers “served fearlessly and selflessly in defense of our nation.”

“Their sacrifice, and the sacrifices of their families, will never be forgotten,” said Lt. Gen. Robert Harter, chief of the Army Reserve and commanding general of the U.S. Army Reserve Command. “On behalf of the Army Reserve, we extend our deepest condolences to their families and loved ones.”

Below is what is known about the four identified service members.

Sgt. Declan J. Coady, 20

The Army Reserve reported that Coady, posthumously advanced from specialist, hailed from Des Moines, Iowa, and entered the Reserve in 2023 as an information‑technology specialist. During his service he earned the Army Service Ribbon, the National Defense Service Ribbon and the Overseas Service Ribbon.

Coady graduated from Valley High School in 2023 and earned the rank of Eagle Scout, according to a 2020 Facebook post from his Boy Scout troop in West Des Moines.

A statement from Drake University in Des Moines noted that Coady was enrolled at the school, pursuing studies in information systems, cybersecurity and computer science. The university called him “a well‑loved and highly dedicated” student with “an incredibly bright future ahead of him.”