US Army Confirms Death of Active-Duty Officer in Doha

WASHINGTON: The US Army has confirmed the death of a serving military officer in a non-combat-related incident in Doha, Qatar, as the number of US service members reported killed during the war involving Iran reaches 19.

The Pentagon said 37-year-old Captain Bianca C. Wilkerson, who was from Norfolk, Virginia, died on September 18. The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation. She was posthumously promoted to the rank of major.

Wilkerson was assigned to the US Army Central Command and Third Army headquarters at Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina.

The latest death brings the number of US service members publicly identified as having died while deployed in support of the Iran war to 19, according to the Pentagon’s casualty accounting.

The reported fatalities include both combat and non-combat deaths.

The development comes as US forces continue operations in the Middle East amid the ongoing conflict involving Iran, the United States and Israel.