Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said the U.S. military is striking “Iranian-aligned militia groups” in Iraq as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth vowed Thursday to “honor” the sacrifice of six U.S. service members killed in a plane crash there last week. 

President Donald Trump, Hegseth and Caine on Wednesday attended the dignified transfer of the six fallen soldiers at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. The Pentagon said last week that the U.S. forces were killed when a KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq during a combat mission in support of Operation Epic Fury. 

Caine said Thursday that in Iraq, AH-64 helicopters “have been striking against Iranian-aligned militia groups to make sure that we suppress any threat in Iraq against U.S. forces or U.S. interests.” 

“And we remain focused on pursuit of any platform that Iran could field to harm Americans or our partners,” he added.

TRUMP THREATENS KEY IRANIAN GAS FIELD AFTER ISRAELI STRIKE

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine speak during a news conference at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, March 19, 2026.  (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Reflecting on the fallen U.S. service members, Hegseth said, “Yesterday at Dover Air Force Base, President Trump, the chairman, and I stood in solemn silence as heroes came home.” 

“Flag-draped caskets. We honored them. We grieved with their families, and we listened. What I heard through tears, through hugs, through strength and through unbreakable resolve was the same from family after family. They said, ‘finish this. Honor their sacrifice. Do not waver. Do not stop until the job is done.’ My response, along with that of the president, was simple — of course, we will finish this. We will honor their sacrifice,” Hegseth said. 

“Yesterday’s ceremony reminded us why we fight. Not for nation building or democracy promotion, but to crush direct threats to America, Americans, and our interests. We fight to win, and we are winning, on our terms, following our objectives,” he continued.

12 ARAB AND ISLAMIC COUNTRIES UNITE TO CONDEMN ‘HEINOUS’ IRANIAN ATTACKS

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth salutes, as he and President Donald Trump arrive at Dover Air Force Base in Dover, Delaware, on Wednesday, March 18, 2026.  (Kylie Cooper/Reuters)

“My 13-year-old son popped into my office last night while I was editing these remarks. He asked about the war and the families I met at Dover, and I looked at him and I said, ‘They died for you, son, so that your generation doesn’t have to deal with a nuclear Iran’,” Hegseth also said. “It’s the truth. And they did. So to the families who said, ‘finish this,’ we will. And I say the same to every American who wants peace through strength. May Almighty God continue to bless our troops in this fight. And again to the American people, please pray for them, every day, on bended knee, with your family, in your schools, in your churches, in the name of Jesus Christ. To the troops, keep going and Godspeed.” 

Those killed were Maj. John “Alex” Klinner, 33; Maj. Ariana Savino, 31; Tech. Sgt. Ashley Pruitt, 34; Capt. Seth Koval, 38; Capt. Curtis Angst, 30; and Master. Sgt. Tyler Simmons, 28.

A U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refueling tanker aircraft takes off from the Kadena Air Base, west of Okinawa, southern Japan, in August 2023. (Hiro Komae/AP)

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Caine said at the Pentagon Thursday that, “Our nation will never forget their sacrifice, and we will never forget their names,” and, “Our entire joint force mourns with you today.” 

Fox News Digital’s Bradford Betz contributed to this report. 

A teenage boy has died after a flat fire in south London, that broke out next to a fire station.

Four fire engines and around 25 personnel tackled the blaze on the first floor of a six-storey building in Cooper’s Road, Southwark, on Wednesday.

One teenage boy made it out of the property before firefighters arrived and was taken to hospital, while another died at the scene, London Fire Brigade (LFB) said.

The fire broke out next to Old Kent Road Fire Station, with the first call received just before 3pm.

Crews from Dockhead, Dowgate, Shadwell and Whitechapel fire stations went to the scene and the blaze was under control just after 4.30pm.

A 64-metre turntable ladder appliance from Old Kent Road Fire Station was on the scene within six minutes of the call, an LFB spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added: “Another appliance from Old Kent Road was out at a different incident but did return to the scene of the incident later.”

The cause Is being investigated by the LFB and Metropolitan Police.

America has made visa bond mandatory for 50 countries, which will come into effect from April 2, 2026. The US State Department said on Wednesday (18 March 2026) that citizens will have to deposit a bond of $ 15,000 before getting B1 (Business) and B2 (Tourist) visas. This bond will be returned to those visa holders who comply with the visa conditions and return from the US on time or do not travel at all.

Why did the Trump administration take this step?

The purpose of this step of the Trump administration is to reduce illegal visa overstay. According to American officials, so far visas have been issued to about a thousand foreigners under this program, out of which 97 percent returned to their country on time. On the contrary, in the last year of the previous government, more than 44 thousand people from 50 countries covered under this scheme stayed in America longer than the visa period.

Names of these countries were added

If the person returns to his country on time following the visa conditions, this money will be returned. From April 2, 12 new countries, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Grenada, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles and Tunisia, will be included under this policy. These countries will join the 38 countries on which this rule is already applicable, such as Algeria, Angola, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe etc. The names of India and Pakistan are not included in this list.

The US State Department said that this program can be extended to more countries in the future on the basis of ‘immigration risk factors’, that is, new countries can be added on the basis of overstay data and compliance with the rules. The Trump administration also described this policy as economically beneficial. According to him, it costs an average of 18 thousand dollars to expel a person living illegally in America from the country.

America is saving crores due to new rule

Through this program, American taxpayers are being saved approximately $800 million per year by reducing overstays. This visa bond rule specifically applies to short-term visas like B1 (Business) and B2 (Tourism). This bond acts as a financial guarantee so that the people adhere to the conditions of the visa. B1 and B2 visas are the most commonly issued non-immigrant visas, used for business, tourism, and family visits.

First on Fox: A Los Angeles police union is calling for an investigation into City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson for allegedly calling a school board member in an attempt to get out of a citation after he was stopped earlier this month while driving in a school zone.

Harris-Dawson claimed he was the victim of possible racial profiling when he was stopped on March 4 by a Los Angeles School police officer while on his way to a committee meeting in a government vehicle. 

He was pulled over for making a U-turn in a school zone. 

TEXAS JUDGE WHO PLAYED VICTIM CARD BOOTED FROM RODEO GROUNDS A SECOND TIME FOLLOWING VIP SEATING DISPUTE

Los Angeles City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson speaks during a press conference at the Edward R. Roybal Learning Center in Los Angeles. Harris-Dawson said he was stopped for a traffic violation on March 4, calling it a “traumatic” experience. (Hans Gutknecht/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)

The councilman was issued a $238 citation for a moving violation, the California Post initially reported. 

Citing news reports that Harris-Dawson called a Los Angeles Unified School District boss during the traffic stop, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) is asking City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto to look into whether he used his position to avoid accountability for the alleged moving violation near a high school during morning drop off time.

“If this is true, the public deserves to know which school board member Mr. Harris-Dawson called, what was said on this phone call and if the officers involved were contacted by the school board member,” the LAPPL, which represents rank and file officers within the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), wrote in separate letters obtained by Fox News Digital to Feldstein Soto and Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman. 

“We urge your office to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation to determine whether or not Los Angeles City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson violated the law and the public trust with his action,” both letters said. 

LAPPL President Ricky Mendoza said it would be “unethical and potentially illegal” for a city leader to use their position of power to attempt to “avoid accountability for their reckless driving in a school zone.”

DEM LAWMAKER DISPUTES POLICE BODYCAM AMID REPORTS HE SAID HE WAS ABOVE THE LAW: ‘ON TOP’ OR ‘ON TIME’

An intensified police presence from the Los Angeles School Police keeps watch over a lunchtime crowd at Jefferson High School in response to recent racially motivated fighting that took place on the campus. (Getty Images)

“We urge the DA and City Attorney to hold this very powerful elected official accountable if in fact he violated the law,” he said. 

During a recent council meeting, Harris-Dawson, who is Black, described the experience as traumatic “as it was when I was 16.”

“In Los Angeles, every single time data is collected on pretextual traffic stops, they are grossly racially biased,” he said.

He said that he’d been stopped four times while driving a government-issued vehicle. 

“The first question was, roll down your windows. The second question was, how do you have this vehicle? The third question was, well, you work for the city. What job do you do for the city?” Harris-Dawson told his colleagues. 

“In fact, I’m the president of the council,” he added. “I had to explain this on the corner of Main and 25th Street, while I was trying to get to the committee just two days ago.”

Rachel Brashier, left, aide to Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, right, listen to public comment at Los Angeles City Hall in Los Angeles in May 2025. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

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Fox News Digital reached out to Harris-Dawson’s office, as well as the offices of Feldstein Soto and the district attorney, but did not immediately receive a response Wednesday night.