U.S. soldier killed in Iraq was 30-year-old father from North Carolina

A U.S. soldier from North Carolina, Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, died in Iraq while participating in the controlled detonation of an Iranian drone. The military confirmed his death on Tuesday, noting that Swinton had served for nearly a decade and was a father of two young children.

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I will never recover from this. We had so many plans for when you got back, I'm sick to my stomach.

Swinton, who was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment out of Fort Bragg, will be posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and Combat Action Badge, and promoted to staff sergeant. The Army has launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death on Sunday at an air base in Irbil.

His mother, Christel Swinton Andujar, described him as a devoted family man whose legacy would endure through the lives he touched. His wife, Mia Gonzalez-Swinton, expressed her devastation on Facebook, lamenting their lost future plans. "I will never recover from this," she wrote. "We had so many plans for when you got back, I'm sick to my stomach."

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His legacy will live on through the countless lives he touched, the laughter he shared, the strength he gave others, and the unconditional love he poured into his family.

Swinton's death follows that of two other U.S. soldiers killed in Jordan the previous week during attacks involving Iranian ballistic missiles and drones. These were the first U.S. troop fatalities directly attributed to Iranian fire since the initial phase of the war. The ongoing conflict between the U.S. and Iran has entered its tenth day, marked by reciprocal strikes across the region.

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Sgt. Swinton was an experienced noncommissioned officer who took great pride in his work and the people around him. He answered the call to duty with courage, honor, and selfless dedication.