The United States military announced Sunday that a US service member was killed Saturday in northern Iraq, where US forces are based, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM).

CENTCOM stated the soldier died during a controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance on a downed Iranian attack drone.

The latest casualty brings to 17 the number of US military personnel killed since the war with Iran began, with at least 420 wounded and one missing in action.

The war started on February 28, when the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran, and Iran retaliated by hitting US military assets in the Gulf. A ceasefire memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed June 17 initiated a 60-day negotiation period, but hostilities resumed July 7.

Since then, the US and Iran have traded attacks. On Sunday night, the US announced it had concluded its ninth consecutive night of strikes against Iran. Iran responded with ballistic missiles hitting US transport planes at Aqaba airport in Jordan.

President Donald Trump called the deaths "a very sad thing" and stated, "We're never allowing Iran to have a nuclear weapon." He added that the US is hitting Iran "very hard" to honor fallen service members.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll found only about one in four Americans believe Trump's war with Iran is worth its costs, with most expressing concern about economic and security fallout.

The US death toll in the Iran war, spanning 142 days, is a fraction of the thousands killed in Iraq and Afghanistan but higher than in Kosovo and Libya air campaigns.

Iran's Health Ministry reported at least 50 killed and 500 injured in US strikes in July. From the war's start until the MoU, at least 3,468 Iranians were killed in US-Israeli attacks, including 376 children and 496 women.

Source: www.aljazeera.com