Trump vows retaliation for U.S. service members’ deaths

By Sarah Roderick-Fitch
The Center Square

For a 10th consecutive night, the U.S. is carrying out strikes on Iran, targeting the Islamic Republic’s ability to attack commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Following the announcement of three U.S. service members killed in action resulting from Iranian strikes, President Donald Trump threatened to come back hard on the Islamic Republic in retribution for the deaths.

“Every time Iran kills an American soldier they will pay for that killing many times over! This directive has been passed on to Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Daniel Caine, and every leader in the military,” the president wrote on Truth Social Monday afternoon.

Despite the U.S. strikes against Iran, the Islamic Republic doesn’t appear to be letting up from aggression in the Strait of Hormuz or its attacks on Gulf neighbors, including strikes on Jordan, Kuwait, Iraq and Bahrain, home of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.

In addition to the U.S. striking Iranian military targets in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz, Trump reinstated a full naval blockade on Iranian ports, which the administration estimates is costing the Iranian economy between $400 million and $500 million a day in losses.

The continued strikes come as the president is reportedly weighing options to intensify strikes against Iran, targeting infrastructure and energy structures.

The Trump administration has requested $87.6 billion from Congress to cover the costs of the conflict, including more than $70 billion for military expenses, according to a White House supplemental appropriations request.