Two Iowa National Guard soldiers and one U.S. civilian interpreter were killed in a terrorist attack in Palmyra, Syria, on December 13, 2025, by a lone gunman suspected to be affiliated with ISIS. The attack occurred during a key leader engagement as part of ongoing counterterrorism operations in the region, and the gunman was killed during the incident.
The attack took place near Palmyra, a historically significant site in central Syria, during a meeting aimed at expanding security cooperation between U.S. and Syrian forces.
The gunman, identified as a member of Syria’s internal security forces, was reportedly under evaluation for extremist views and was set to be fired the following day; authorities are investigating whether he was a direct ISIS member or merely espoused the group’s ideology.
Meskwaki Nation Police Chief Jeffrey Bunn confirmed that his son, Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, was one of the two Iowa National Guard members killed. The identities of the victims including Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres Tovar, 25, were not officially released until after next of kin were notified, but the Pentagon confirmed the deaths of two soldiers and one civilian interpreter. Three other U.S. soldiers were injured, two in critical but stable condition, and one with a superficial injury.
The U.S. military emphasized that the soldiers were carrying out their mission with courage and professionalism, and the attack has prompted a renewed focus on security cooperation with Syria’s new government.
President Donald Trump vowed "very serious retaliation" against those responsible, stating the attack was an ISIS attack against the U.S. and Syria, and that Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa was "extremely angry and disturbed" by the incident.
The U.S. has approximately 1,000 troops deployed in Syria as part of the Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve, with 200–250 Iowa National Guard members among them, deployed since May 2025.
President Trump, in a Truth Social post and subsequent remarks, emphasized that the U.S. would hunt down and eliminate those who target Americans, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth echoing this stance on social media.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and U.S. Senator Joni Ernst expressed deep sorrow, calling the fallen soldiers heroes and reaffirming the strong bond within the Iowa National Guard family.
The last death of an Iowa National Guard member in service occurred in 2011 in Afghanistan, making this the first such fatality since then.
President al-Sharaa, who led the rebel forces that toppled Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, has since improved relations with the U.S., including a historic visit to Washington in November 2025, but the attack has raised concerns about the vetting of former rebel and Islamist fighters integrated into the new security forces.
