{"id":202389,"date":"2026-03-04T20:42:18","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T20:42:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/us-sinks-iranian-warship-as-death-toll-climbs-iran-updates-usa-today\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T20:42:18","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T20:42:18","slug":"us-sinks-iranian-warship-as-death-toll-climbs-iran-updates-usa-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/us-sinks-iranian-warship-as-death-toll-climbs-iran-updates-usa-today\/","title":{"rendered":"US sinks Iranian warship as death toll climbs. Iran updates. – USA Today"},"content":{"rendered":"

The White House on Wednesday said there are no plans for ground troops in Iran, even as the Trump administration pledged more firepower in the war<\/a> after officials said a U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship<\/a>, with reports of at least 80 people killed.
The U.S. and Israel will soon control Iranian airspace, and the leader of Iran’s military unit that tried to assassinate President Donald Trump<\/a> has been killed<\/a>, Trump administration leaders said during a news conference touting U.S. achievements in the war. The Senate is scheduled on Wednesday to vote on whether to block Trump<\/a> from ordering more strikes on Iran.
In a few short days, the United States and Israel’s war against Iran has seen the region transformed. But U.S. troops throughout the region remain under attack by Iran and its proxies, and over 1,000 U.S. citizens are still looking to escape the region<\/a> as the war expands to neighboring countries, causing panic in the financial markets and oil prices to surge. The first American troops killed<\/a> in the war were identified Tuesday.
Iran\u2019s counterattacks thus far have killed at least six U.S. servicemembers and have led to several U.S. embassies closing in the region, including in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Beirut, Lebanon; and Kuwait.
Contributing: Reuters<\/em>
Reuters
NATO air defences destroyed an Iranian ballistic missile fired towards\u00a0Turkey.
The missile incident is the first time that\u00a0Turkey, which borders Iran and has NATO’s second-largest military, has been drawn into the conflict. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said there was no sense that it would trigger the Atlantic alliance’s\u00a0collective-defence clause.
Bart Jansen
Responding to criticism about Americans stranded in the Middle East, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the government issued numerous warnings about traveling in the region since January.
On Jan. 14, the U.S. mission to Saudi Arabia advised personnel to exercise caution and limit non-essential travel to military installations On Feb. 11, the State Department office of consular affairs shared a list of countries with level four \u201cdo not travel\u201d advisories.
\u201cYou cannot be much more clear than that: do not travel to these following countries,\u201d Leavitt said.
On Feb. 23, the U.S. embassy in Lebanon ordered non-emergency workers and relatives to leave. On March 2, the State Department urged U.S. citizens to leave Lebanon. On Feb. 27, Rubio labeled Iran a state sponsor of wrongful detention and said no Americans should travel there for any reason. The same day, Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, warned Americans to leave Iran.
\u201cThe State Department was all hands on deck in advising extreme caution and do-not-travel alerts to Americans in the region,\u201d Leavitt said. \u201cWe are actively and rapidly working to charter flights.\u201d
Zac Anderson
President Donald Trump is planning to attend the dignified transfer of the remains of six U.S. service members who were killed in the military operation in Iran “to stand in grief alongside their families,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
The Department of Defense is working to schedule the dignified transfer, Leavitt told reporters at White House press briefing on March 4. The solemn ceremony, conducted at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, transfers the remains of killed service members from the aircraft transporting them back to the U.S..
The Pentagon identified four of the killed U.S. service members as Capt. Cody A. Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Florida; Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota; and Sgt. Declan J. Coady, 20, of\u00a0West Des Moines, Iowa<\/a>.
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on March 4 that ground troops are currently “not part” of the operation in Iran, but did not take the option fully off the table.
“They’re not part of the plan for this operation at this time,” she said during a White House press briefing. “But I certainly will never take away military options on behalf of the President of the United States or the Commander-in-Chief. And he wisely does not do the same for himself.”
“I know there’s many leaders in the past who like to take options off of the table without having a full understanding of how things could develop. So again, it’s not part of the current plan, but I’m not gonna remove an option for the president that is on the table,” she added.
Bart Jansen
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump thinks the American public the supports the war against Iran.
\u201cI think he does,\u201d Leavitt said. \u201cThis is a rogue terrorist regime. The American people are smart enough to know that.\u201d
Only 1 in 4 Americans approve of the strikes on Iran that killed the country’s supreme leader\u00a0Ali Khamenei<\/a>, according to a Reuters\/Ipsos survey<\/a> published on March 2. In the poll, 27% of respondents said they approved of the strikes, while a majority said they were either unsure about them (29%) or said they disapproved (43%).
Jeanine Santucci
More than 17,500 U.S. citizens have returned from Middle Eastern countries since the attack in Iran began on Feb. 28, according to State Department Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson. Many have also left for other countries in Europe and Asia, he said.
Johnson said over 8,500 Americans returned to the United States on March 3 alone. Americans abroad in the conflict region<\/a> have been encouraged to register with the State Department Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) at\u00a0step.state.gov<\/a>.
“Through the State Department 24\/7 Task Force, we have assisted nearly 6,500 Americans abroad, including offering security guidance and travel assistance,” he wrote on X<\/a>.
Earlier in the week, U.S. embassies including in Jerusalem and Qatar said in advisories that they were not evacuating or directly assisting those who wished to leave the region, prompting concern for Americans abroad. Since then, the embassy in Jerusalem said the government is ready to help citizens leave.
Bart Jansen
The Senate will vote at 4 p.m. ET on a resolution<\/a> saying that Congress hasn\u2019t declared war on Iran<\/a> and directing President Donald Trump to \u201cterminate the use of United States Armed Froces for hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran\u201d unless explicitly authorized.
The resolution from Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, is expected to fail but send a message about support for the military strikes on Iran that began Feb. 28.
The Senate has 53 of Trump\u2019s fellow Republicans and 47 lawmakers who caucus with Democrats. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, has opposed what he calls a presidential war. But Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania, supports the military strikes.
“Senators need to pick a side,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York. “The American people will be watching.”
Melina Khan
On March 2 and 3, the State Department updated travel advisories for some Middle East countries.
The latest update added advisories at either:
Here are the newest travel advisories issued March 2 and 3:
Bart Jansen
In response to a question, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters he had no message to Russia and China calling for an immediate end to hostilities with Iran.
\u201cI don\u2019t have message for them. They\u2019re not really a factor here,\u201d Hegseth said. \u201cOur issue is not with them. It\u2019s with the nuclear ambitions of Iran.\u201d
Bart Jansen
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said U.S. allies in the Middle East have been shooting down missiles and drones with precision, while Iran fired more than 500 missiles and launched 2,000 drones indiscriminately.
Jordanian air defenses intercepted a cluster of one-way attack drones headed to Oman, Caine said. Bahrain\u2019s air defense forces shot down an in-bound drone heading toward the capital of Manama\u2019s maritime infrastructure, to protect their shipping lanes. Saudi Arabia\u2019s Patriot batteries stopped a salvo of ballistic missiles aimed at energy facilities. The United Arab Emirates neutralized multiple drones targeting Abu Dhabi\u2019s industrial zone. Qatari fighters shot down two Iranian bombers.
\u201cTogether these nations are helping to defend themselves and project power as required against the enemy,\u201d Caine said.
Jeanine Santucci
At least 80 people were killed when a U.S. submarine fired a torpedo that sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka’s deputy foreign minister told a local TV station.
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Wednesday that it was the first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II.
The strike launched a Sri Lankan search-and-rescue operation, a spokesperson for the country’s defense ministry told USA TODAY<\/a>. Earlier Wednesday, Sri Lankan officials told Reuters that 101 people were missing and 78 were wounded in the submarine strike.
Bart Jansen
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the military has begun ferrying Americans out of the region when space is available on planes but he encouraged people to register with the State Department for assistance.
\u201cIt\u2019s a great opportunity to encourage everybody in the region to go to the State Department and register,\u201d Caine said.
\u201cWe\u2019ve also opened up space-available seats on C-17s and other airplanes,\u201d Caine added.
\u201cBut that\u2019s really a State Department matter.\u201d
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Asked about a strike on a girls’ school in southern Iran<\/a> that killed about 175 people, Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth said, “All I can say is that we’re investigating that. We never target civilian targets.”
“We’re investigating this,” he added when pressed.
Bart Jansen
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the leader of Iran\u2019s military unit that tried to assassinate President Donald Trump \u201chas been hunted down and killed.\u201d
\u201cIran tried to kill President Trump and President Trump got the last laugh,\u201d Hegseth said.
Hegseth said the military official wasn\u2019t an initial target in the strikes on Iran, which focused on missiles and launchers.
\u201cWe\u2019ve known for a long time that Iran had intentions on trying to kill President Trump and or other U.S. officials,\u201d Hegseth said. \u201cWe eventually had the opportunity to do that from the air.\u201d
Hegseth didn\u2019t identify the Iranian military official.
In 2024, the Justice Department charged an Iranian man<\/a>, Farhad Shakeri, accusing him of being an asset of Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps tasked with plotting the assassination of the regime’s enemies, including Trump. Shakeri has remained at large and resides in Tehran, the Justice Department said.
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the U.S. also sank 20 ships in Iran\u2019s navy. Hegseth said the sinkings included its most prized ship named after Qasem Soleimani, a prominent general who served in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and who was killed by a U.S. drone strike in 2020<\/a>.
\u201cLast night, we sunk their prize ship, the Soleimani,\u201d Hegseth said. \u201cLooks like (Trump) got him twice,\u201d he added.
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Iran’s ballistic missile shots fired were down 86%, with a 23% decrease in the last 24 hours. One-way attack drone shots were down 73% from opening days of the war, he said.
Caine said the United States had achieved “localized air superiority” over the southern flank of Iran’s coast.
“We will now begin to expand inland, striking progressively deeper into Iranian territory,” he said.
Bart Jansen
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S. and Israeli air forces will complete control of the skies over Iran within days \u2212 less than a week from the start of the war \u2212 with additional planes arriving March 4 to escalate the bombing campaign.
\u201cThey are toast and they know it,\u201d Hegseth said.
Iran will still be able to launch missiles and one-way drones. But with complete control of the skies Hegseth said the air forces would use 500-, 1,000- and 2,000-pound precision bombs with additional planes.
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday that “more forces are arriving” to join the war.
In days, the U.S. and Israeli military will have “complete control” of Iran’s airspace, Hegseth said, bringing “death and destruction from the sky all day long.”
The campaign has twice as intensity as the “shock and awe” campaign at the beginning of the war in Iraq and as much as seven times the intensity of the 12-day war in June, he said.
“More fighters and more bombers are arriving just today,” he said.
Reuters
U.S. stock index futures\u00a0reversed losses<\/a>\u00a0and were marginally higher on Wednesday as investors assessed a report that suggested Iranian operatives were\u00a0discussing terms to end the five-day conflict<\/a>\u00a0with Israel and the United States, Reuters reported.
A New York Times report said operatives from Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence had reached out indirectly to the C.I.A. a day after the attacks began, according to officials briefed on the outreach.
However, U.S. officials are skeptical, at least in the short term, that either the Trump administration or Iran is really ready for an off-ramp, the report said. Read more<\/a>.<\/strong>
Jeanine Santucci
The death toll in Iran has risen to 1,045 since the United State and Israel launched attacks on Saturday, Feb. 28, according to reports from state media on Wednesday.
The Iranian Red Crescent Society previously put the death toll at 787, including dozens of schoolgirls and staff at a primary school<\/a>.
Jeanine Santucci
Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican ally of the president, told reporters after a classified briefing on Tuesday that more firepower from the U.S. military is coming to Iran.
“The amount of firepower coming in the next day or two from us is going to be overwhelming,” Graham said. “The demise of this regime is at hand, and the goal is to make sure they can never be a threat like they were before.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed lawmakers in the House and Senate on Tuesday.
Jeanine Santucci
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is scheduled to give a news conference Wednesday morning with updates about the United States’ operations in Iran.
Hegseth, whose department is formally known as the Department of Defense, is expected to speak at 8 a.m. ET alongside Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine. Tune in live here<\/a>.
Kim Hjelmgaard
At least 101 people were missing and 78 wounded after a submarine attack on an Iranian ship off Sri Lanka’s coast, sources in Sri Lanka’s navy and defense ministry told the Reuters news agency on March 4. A Sri Lankan defense ministry spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY that the country’s navy and coast guard have sent search-and-rescue teams to an Iranian ship that sunk near its waters but was unable to provide further details. It wasn’t clear who attacked the ship.
Michael Loria
Adm. Brad Cooper,<\/a> commander\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Central\u00a0Command\u00a0leading the U.S. campaign in Iran, detailed Tuesday night U.S. troop deployments as part of the war effort.\u00a0
Among military units deployed to the region are 50,000 soldiers, “200 fighters,” two aircraft carriers, and an undisclosed number of B-1, B-2, and B-52 bombers, Cooper said in a statement<\/a>, adding “more capabilities are on the way.” He also called the deployment “the largest building by the U.S. in the Middle East in a generation.”
USA TODAY has reached out to the military to confirm whether “fighters” means fighter jets.
The admiral said the military has struck over 2,000 targets as part of the war, including sinking “the entire” Iranian Navy, and has destroyed 17 ships. Cooper previously said that a force of B-52 bombers had hit ballistic missiles and command and control posts.
“We\u2019re focused on shooting all the things that can shoot at us,” Cooper added.\u00a0
Iran has responded by launching over 500 ballistic missiles and more than 2,000 drones, though U.S. strikes have severely crippled its ability to attack, the admiral noted.
Contributing: Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA TODAY<\/em>
Michael Loria
U.S. military officials have released the names of four American soldiers killed so far in the war with Iran.
According to the Pentagon<\/a>, the soldiers killed were Capt. Cody A. Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Florida; Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota; and Sgt. Declan J. Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, Iowa.
The four are among the six U.S. casualties of the war that began Feb. 28 when the Trump administration and Israel engaged in a coordinated series of strikes that took out Iran’s supreme leader and dozens of other officials.
Pentagon officials said they were killed in an unmanned aircraft attack on March 1 on Port Shuaiba, Kuwait. All four were with a Des Moines Army Reserve unit. U.S. military officials are investigating the attack.<\/p>\n

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The White House on Wednesday said there are no plans for ground troops in Iran, even as the Trump administration pledged more firepower in the war after officials said a U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship, with reports of at least 80 people killed.The U.S. and Israel will soon control Iranian airspace, and the leader […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":202390,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-202389","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-us","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202389"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202389\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/202390"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}