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3 US Troops Killed in Jordan Airbase Shooting

3 US Troops Killed in Jordan Airbase Shooting
3 US Troops Killed in Jordan Airbase Shooting

Three US troops were killed in a shooting attack outside a Jordanian training facility on Friday, a US official said, following earlier reports that one or two US personnel were dead.

"A total of three US service members died today in the incident in Jordan," the official said. "Initial reports were that one was killed, two injured. The two injured service members were transported to a hospital in Amman where they died."

The official added that service members were in vehicles approaching the gate of a Jordanian military training facility, where they came under small arms fire, Al Jazeera reported.

"We are working with the Jordanian government to gather additional details about what happened."

The shooting took place at the gate of the Prince Faisal airbase in al-Jafr, southern Jordan, when the car carrying the US trainers failed to stop, the Jordanian army said, adding that a Jordanian officer was also wounded.

Jordan, a key US ally in the Middle East, is a member of the US-led coalition fighting the self-styled Islamic State terrorist group in neighboring Syria and Iraq.

US forces have trained a small group of Syrian militants in Jordan and American instructors have trained Iraqi and Palestinian security forces in Jordan as well over the past few years. The White House said on Friday it would work with Jordan to determine the circumstances that led to the shooting deaths of three US military trainers.

"The United States is quite interested in getting to the bottom of what exactly occurred. Our expectation is that the government and military officials in Jordan will assist us in that investigation," White House Spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters.  

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