US Army names 2 Iowa National Guard members killed in attack in Syria
WASHINGTON AP The two Iowa National Guard members killed in a weekend attack in Syria that the U S military blamed on the Islamic State group were identified Monday and remembered as dedicated soldiers The U S Army named them as Sgt Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar of Des Moines and Sgt William Nathaniel Howard of Marshalltown Iowa Gov Kim Reynolds ordered all flags in Iowa to fly at half-staff in their honor saying We are grateful for their institution and deeply mourn their loss The Pentagon s chief spokesman Sean Parnell has noted a U S civilian working as an interpreter also was killed Three other Guard members were wounded in the attack the Iowa National Guard explained Monday with two of them in stable condition and the other in good condition The attack was a major test for the rapprochement between the United States and Syria since the ouster of autocratic leader Bashar Assad a year ago coming as the U S military is expanding its cooperation with Syrian assurance forces Hundreds of American troops are deployed in eastern Syria as part of a coalition fighting IS How the attack happened The shooting Saturday in the Syrian desert near the historic city of Palmyra also wounded members of the country s assurance forces and the gunman was killed The assailant had joined Syria s internal protection forces as a base protection guard two months ago and in recent days was reassigned amid suspicions that he might be affiliated with IS a Syrian official noted The man stormed a meeting between U S and Syrian guard representatives who were having lunch together and opened fire after clashing with Syrian guards Interior Ministry spokesperson Nour al-Din al-Baba disclosed Sunday Al-Baba acknowledged that it was a major prevention breach but stated that in the year since Assad s fall there have been various more successes than failures by defense forces The Army commented Monday that the matter is under scrutiny Military representatives and President Donald Trump have blamed the attack on an IS member Trump administration vows retaliation Our hearts go out to their families and we lift them up in prayer for strength and comfort during this time of grief Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated Monday on social media The United States of America will avenge these fallen Americans with overwhelming force Trump reiterated his promise of retaliation from over the weekend telling reporters at the White House on Monday that IS will be hit hard He also reaffirmed his assistance for Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa saying the Syrian establishment is not to blame for the deadly attack This had nothing to do with him Trump reported of al-Sharaa This is a part of Syria that they really don t have much control over And it was a surprise He feels very badly about it He s working on it He s a strong man Trump welcomed al-Sharaa who led the lightning insurgency that toppled Assad s rule to the White House for a historic meeting last month Iowa National Guard members remembered as heroes Meanwhile Torres-Tovar and Howard were remembered as cherished members of the Iowa National Guard family Stephen Osborn adjutant general declared in a message Our focus now is providing unwavering advocacy to their families through this unimaginable time and ensuring the legacy of these two heroes is never forgotten Osborn noted Luis Corona has known Torres-Tovar since middle school when they played soccer together during recess They drifted apart while attending different high schools but reconnected after Corona enlisted and saw a familiar face upon joining his Iowa unit after bootcamp I was very nervous very new to the Army I didn t know what to expect And just to see Edgar there it was a big relief a huge weight off my shoulders like OK I won t be alone in this Corona described The Associated Press From then on he mentioned their bond grew into a brotherhood Torres-Tovar s defining trait was his selflessness Corona disclosed He was remembered as a role model to his younger siblings and all the newly enlisted soldiers in the unit Corona learned of his friend s death while reading the news No he shouted at the top of his lungs in what he later described as an expression of disbelief shock sadness anger just every form of distraught you can think of Howard had sought to be a soldier since he was a young boy according to Jeffrey Bunn Howard s stepfather and chief of the Meskwaki Nation Police Department in Tama Iowa about miles kilometers northeast of Des Moines Howard loved what he was doing and would be the first in and last out Bunn wrote Saturday on the department s Facebook page Howard also was a loving husband and an amazing man of faith Bunn reported adding that Howard s younger brother a staff sergeant in the Iowa National Guard would escort Nate back to Iowa Howard was inspired by his grandfather s amenity and craved to serve for years according to an April post on a Facebook page dedicated to sharing stories of the unit He had served for over years Fingerhut informed from Des Moines Associated Press writers Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City and Abby Sewell in Beirut Lebanon contributed to this account Source
