Exclusive: Soldiers and Gold Star families press Army leadership after deadly Iranian drone strike

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, smoke rises from an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1, 2026, which killed multiple U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more.

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, damage is seen to fortified barracks at Camp Arifjan, a logistics hub for the U.S. Army in the Middle East in southern Kuwait, on March 6, 2026, after it was hit by an Iranian strike after the U.S. launched Operation Epic Fury.

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, discarded military gear and a bloody bandage are seen inside a bunker at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1, 2026, after an Iranian drone strike killed multiple U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more.

This satellite image shows a U.S. tactical operations center near the Port of Shuaiba in Kuwait on Jan. 12, 2026.

This satellite image from March 4, 2026, shows the aftermath of the strike that hit the U.S. tactical operations center near the Port of Shuaiba in Kuwait days earlier.

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, blood stains a stretcher at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1, 2026, after an Iranian drone strike killed multiple U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more.

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, U.S. soldiers, including those injured after an Iranian drone strike on Port Shuaiba, sit inside a military transport plane as they are evacuated from Kuwait, March 10, 2026.

This combination of photos released by the U.S. Army taken on May 16, 2025, shows from top left, Sgt. Declan Coady, Master Sgt. Class Nicole Amor, Maj. Cody Khork, Master Sgt. Class Noah Tietjens, Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, after they were killed following an Iranian drone strike on March 1, 2026, in Port Shuaiba in Kuwait.

Lt. Col. Tim Halbur, who was injured in an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait, shows the wristband he wears Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Ankeny, Iowa, which bears the names of his fellow soldiers that were killed.

Lt. Col. Tim Halbur, who was injured in an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait, shows the scars on his arm, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Ankeny, Iowa.

Lt. Col. Tim Halbur, who was injured in an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait, shows the scars on his arm, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Ankeny, Iowa.

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, smoke rises from an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1, 2026, which killed multiple U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more. (AP Photo)

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, smoke rises from an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1, 2026, which killed multiple U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more. (AP Photo)

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, damage is seen to fortified barracks at Camp Arifjan, a logistics hub for the U.S. Army in the Middle East in southern Kuwait, on March 6, 2026, after it was hit by an Iranian strike after the U.S. launched Operation Epic Fury. (AP Photo)

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, discarded military gear and a bloody bandage are seen inside a bunker at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1, 2026, after an Iranian drone strike killed multiple U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more. (AP Photo)

This satellite image shows a U.S. tactical operations center near the Port of Shuaiba in Kuwait on Jan. 12, 2026. (© CNES 2026, Distribution Airbus DS via AP)

This satellite image from March 4, 2026, shows the aftermath of the strike that hit the U.S. tactical operations center near the Port of Shuaiba in Kuwait days earlier. (© CNES 2026, Distribution Airbus DS via AP)

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, blood stains a stretcher at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait on March 1, 2026, after an Iranian drone strike killed multiple U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more. (AP Photo)

In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, U.S. soldiers, including those injured after an Iranian drone strike on Port Shuaiba, sit inside a military transport plane as they are evacuated from Kuwait, March 10, 2026. (AP Photo)

This combination of photos released by the U.S. Army taken on May 16, 2025, shows from top left, Sgt. Declan Coady, Master Sgt. Class Nicole Amor, Maj. Cody Khork, Master Sgt. Class Noah Tietjens, Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, after they were killed following an Iranian drone strike on March 1, 2026, in Port Shuaiba in Kuwait. (U.S. Army via AP)

Lt. Col. Tim Halbur, who was injured in an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait, shows the wristband he wears Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Ankeny, Iowa, which bears the names of his fellow soldiers that were killed. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Lt. Col. Tim Halbur, who was injured in an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait, shows the scars on his arm, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Ankeny, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Lt. Col. Tim Halbur, who was injured in an Iranian drone strike at Port Shuaiba in Kuwait, shows the scars on his arm, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, in Ankeny, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

WASHINGTON (AP) — On a sunny, cloudless morning on March 1, the day after President Donald Trump started the war against Iran, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan was coordinating critical Army supplies out of Port Shuaiba in Kuwait.

In an instant, a drone crashed through the ceiling and exploded, killing Marzan, who had served in the military for 36 years. The force flung soldiers into the air, fragments of sheet metal and glass shards impaling them. The tin roof was peeled back “like opening up a sardine can,” one soldier recalled.

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