Department of Defense spokeswoman Sabrina Singh tried to avoid contradicting President Joe Biden‘s demonstrably false claim that no U.S. troops have died during his administration.
Singh was asked about the president’s erroneous claim, which he made during Thursday night’s presidential debate, at Friday’s press briefing.
“Thank you for the question. For more on the president’s comments and on the debate itself, I’d refer you to the White House,” she said. “But in terms of our service members who have been killed in some tragic events around the world … you’ve seen the president call these families to express condolences. This is someone that has intimately experienced the commitment and dedication of what our military does.”
Several U.S. troops have been killed during Biden’s presidency, both in combat and in training accidents.
Thirteen U.S. service members were killed in the Abbey Gate bombing on August 26, 2021, in Kabul, Afghanistan. U.S. forces were preparing to leave Afghanistan, ending two decades of war at the time, and were conducting what ultimately became the largest noncombatant evacuation operations ever. The bombing resulted in the deaths of roughly 170 people, and many more were injured, including dozens of U.S. troops.
Additionally, three U.S. service members, Sgt. William Jerome Rivers, Sgt. Kennedy Ladon Sanders, and Sgt. Breonna Moffett, were killed in Jordan in January by an Iranian-backed militia aerial attack on a U.S. military outpost. Two Navy SEALs were lost at sea during an operation to board an unflagged ship that was carrying Iranian-made weapons to Yemen for the Houthis in January.
Singh said she did not have any calls from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to any of the new Gold Star families to discuss.
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“As you have reported on, we have certainly had service members pass during this administration, and you’ve seen not just the secretary, but the president, weigh in and comment and offer condolences,” Singh added.
Twenty U.S. service members were killed in four separate Osprey crashes from March 2022 through November 2023, according to NBC News. The military grounded the fleet temporarily after eight airmen were killed in an Osprey crash in Japan.
