US President Donald Trump speaks at the White House Oval Office in Washington, D.C., in December last year, after announcing changes to US fuel economy standards. [Getty Images]
US President Donald Trump speaks at the White House Oval Office in Washington, D.C., in December last year, after announcing changes to US fuel economy standards. [Getty Images]

President Donald Trump has vowed to exact a heavy price from Iran for every American soldier killed in Iranian attacks, sharply escalating his rhetoric against Tehran amid a rising US death toll.

Trump said Monday on his Truth Social platform that "for every US soldier Iran kills, they will pay many times over," adding that the order had been conveyed to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine and all military commanders.

The statement came as US casualties in the Middle East have mounted in recent days.

The total number of US troops killed since the war with Iran began in late February has risen to 17.

On Friday, two US soldiers were killed in Jordan in an Iranian missile and drone strike. The following day, a third soldier died in Iraq during a controlled detonation of an unexploded munition from an Iranian drone that had been shot down.

The US military has also been intensifying its response.

US Central Command carried out airstrikes against Iran for the ninth consecutive night on Monday. Since the first combat death following a truce period, the military has signaled it may step up the intensity of its strikes, using the word "retaliation" to describe its operations.

Trump's warning appears to serve a dual purpose: countering growing domestic unease over mounting casualties as the war drags on, while sending a clear message to Iran that any further attacks will be met with an even stronger military response.


sjy@heraldcorp.com