Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, a 30-year-old soldier from Fayetteville, North Carolina, was killed Sunday at an air base in Irbil during the controlled detonation of an Iranian drone, according to a military statement and his family. The Army said it was investigating the circumstances of his death.

Swinton will receive a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge. He also will be promoted posthumously to staff sergeant. He enlisted in the Army in 2017 and was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

Family and military service

Swinton leaves behind a 6-year-old son and a 4-year-old daughter, his mother said. His wife, Mia Gonzalez-Swinton, said she was notified Sunday that he had been killed. “We had so many plans for when you got back, I’m sick to my stomach,” she posted Monday on Facebook. His mother, Christel Swinton Andujar, told WRAL-TV that the family was “the center of his world.”

“Sgt. Swinton was an experienced noncommissioned officer who took great pride in his work and the people around him,” said Brig. Gen. John L. Dawber, commanding general of the Army Air and Missile Defense Command. “He answered the call to duty with courage, honor, and selfless dedication.”

Two other U.S. Army soldiers were killed in Jordan last week while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. The Defense Department identified them as 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas. They also served with Army Air and Missile Defense Command units. A third service member was reported missing after the attack, and U.S. Central Command said “unidentified remains” had been found and were being examined.

Renewed fighting between the United States and Iran was in its 10th day, with both sides launching barrages of strikes, according to the source material. Iran had attacked U.S. allies in the region, while American soldiers were stationed across the Middle East. Iranian authorities said U.S. strikes in the preceding three weeks had killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 500 others. The U.S. State Department warned that Iran and groups supportive of Iran might target other U.S. interests overseas or locations associated with the United States and Americans throughout the world.