Biden honors troops killed in Jordan as remains returned to U.S.

President Joe Biden honored three U.S. service members killed in a recent attack in Jordan as their remains were returned at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Friday.

The president was joined by members of their families for what is known as a dignified transfer — a solemn occasion to honor fallen troops.

Biden stood with first lady Jill Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin as they witnessed the unloading of three flag-draped cases bearing the remains of the service members. The president and first lady held their hands over their hearts as the cases were transferred from a C-5M Super Galaxy transport onto a van.

Also attending were senators from the reservists’ home state of Georgia, Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, as well as Delaware Senator Chris Coons.

Iranian-backed militants struck a base in northeast Jordan near the Iraqi and Syrian borders over the weekend with a drone, killing the three service members and wounding dozens more. The deaths were the first American fatalities by enemy fire since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October.

The attack threatens to further inflame tensions in the Middle East, where Iranian proxies have stepped up attacks even as the Biden administration has painstakingly sought to prevent the Israel-Hamas conflict from escalating.

The attack comes at a delicate time as negotiations proceed toward an agreement to pause Israel’s military campaign in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of hostages taken by the group in its Oct. 7 assault. Hamas is designated a terrorist group by the U.S. and European Union.

The conflict appears to have emboldened Iran, spurring fears the war could spread and involve other groups backed by Tehran. The U.S. has retaliated for earlier attack on its troops with missile strikes in Iraq and Syria. Biden has also launched missile strikes on Yemen this year to try to prevent attacks being carried out by the Houthis, another group backed by Iran, that have targeted shipping in the Red Sea.

Biden has attended dignified transfers before as president. In 2021, he attended the return of 13 U.S. service members killed in a terror attack outside Kabul airport in Afghanistan.

Austin, who was hospitalized last month from complications from treatment for prostate cancer, was seen using a cane. The secretary has received criticism after failing to tell the president or Congress that he was being hospitalized, a decision he apologized for Thursday during a briefing at the Pentagon.