Human Race: Line of duty

The Pentagon has identified the first six U.S. servicemembers killed in the U.S.-Iran conflict: Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, Sgt. Declan J. Coady, Capt. Cody A. Khork, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert M. Marzan, Maj. Jeffrey R. O’Brien, and Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens. The U.S. Army Reserve soldiers died when a munition struck a makeshift operation center in Kuwait one day after the United States and Israel launched sweeping strikes against Iran and killed the country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. All six of the soldiers belonged to the 103rd Sustainment Command based in Des Moines, Iowa. On March 8, the Pentagon announced that a seventh soldier, Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, had died of injuries sustained in an Iranian attack in Saudi Arabia on March 1. On March 10, the Pentagon gave its first official tally of American servicemembers wounded: 140, with eight of those suffering severe injuries. U.S. President Donald Trump honored the fallen soldiers of Operation Epic Fury in a 6-minute video message posted to Truth Social. “We pray for the full recovery of the wounded and send our immense love and eternal gratitude to the families of the fallen,” he said. “And sadly, there will likely be more before it ends.” Israel has marked about a dozen deaths in the conflict. Iran claims about 1,200 of its citizens have died, and Lebanon says Israeli strikes have killed 300 inside its borders.

Seeking safety

Welsh billionaire Sir Michael Moritz, 71, says he’s applying for German citizenship and a passport because the U.K. has become “an uncomfortable place” for Jews. Anti-Semitic attacks spiked in the U.K. after the October Heaton Park Synagogue attack. Moritz said Germany is more welcoming of Jews because “what happened 100 years ago forms a very central part of the education system.” Moritz’s grand­parents were killed in the Holocaust. German law allows descendants of those stripped of their German citizenship by the Nazis to return. It gives him “some mild form of reassurance” to know he can flee to Germany if needed, said Moritz, who currently lives in California. —Amy Lewis

First out

Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, became the first House member defeated in the 2026 midterms when he lost his primary race on March 3. The four-term congressman lost to state Rep. Steve Toth, an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump. Toth’s campaign got significant financial help from banker Robert Marling, who made it his mission to oust Crenshaw. Marling donated $675,000 to an anti-Crenshaw advertising campaign, accounting for two-thirds of the money spent by a super PAC in the race. The billionaire’s feud with Crenshaw dates back several years and demonstrates how much personal animosity, when paired with deep pockets, can influence politics. —Leigh Jones

Historic session

First lady Melania Trump presided over a United Nations Security Council meeting on March 2. It was the first time a sitting first lady took the gavel for the meeting. The U.S. held the rotating Security Council presidency for March, but normally the UN ambassador or a senior government official chairs the meetings. “The path to peace depends on us taking responsibility to empower our children through education and technology,” the first lady said. “Conflict arises from ignorance, but knowledge creates understanding—replacing fear with peace and unity.” President Donald Trump has frequently criticized the UN. In 2025, he told the UN General Assembly that all the UN seems to do “is write a really strongly worded letter, and then never follow that letter up.” —Emma Freire

Noem more at DHS

President Donald Trump replaced Kristi Noem as the head of the Homeland Security Department in early March, following months of criticism from Democrats over immigration enforcement. Trump said Noem served the nation well and characterized her achievements as numerous and spectacular, specifically regarding the border. She will continue serving as special envoy for the new Shield of the Americas security initiative, an effort to target drug trafficking in the Western Hemisphere. Trump tapped Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., to replace Noem at DHS. Trump highlighted Mullin’s legislative work to keep the country’s border secure, end the flow of illegal drugs into the country, and fight crime. —Christina Grube

Dad convicted

Jurors on March 3 took less than two hours to convict Georgia father Colin Gray of all charges related to a 2024 school shooting at Apalachee High School near Winder. Gray’s son, Colt, who was 14 at the time of the shooting, allegedly used a rifle his father gave him as a Christmas present to carry out the mass shooting. Prosecutors accused Gray of allowing his son to possess a weapon despite knowing he was a danger to himself and others. After the two-week trial, jurors found Gray guilty of second-degree murder in the deaths of two 14-year-old students, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo. Under Georgia law, second-degree murder includes causing the death of a child through cruelty to children. The jury also convicted Gray of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of teachers Richard Aspinwall and Cristina Irimie. Another teacher and eight students were wounded in the attack. In addition to the homicide counts, Gray was convicted on multiple counts of reckless conduct and cruelty to children. The case adds Gray to a growing number of parents held legally responsible after their children carried out mass shootings. Colt Gray is scheduled to stand trial as an adult later this year. —Kim Henderson

Mafia boss dies

Benedetto “Nitto” Santapaola, one of Italy’s renowned and ruthless mafia bosses convicted of a string of murders in the 1980s and 1990s, died March 2 in a Milan prison. He was 87. Santapaola spent more than three decades behind bars for instigating a series of killings and attacks, including the murder of anti-mafia Judge Paolo Borsellino and a car bombing that murdered Judge Giovanni Falcone, one of the most brutal attacks on the judiciary in Italy’s history. Known as Il Cacciatore (the hunter), Santapaola was based in Catania, Sicily, and controlled much of eastern Sicily. He was arrested in 1993 after hiding in a farmhouse for 11 years. —Mary Jackson