Two Iowa National Guard members killed in Syria

Dec 15, 2025 | 5:05 PM

UPDATE:

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has ordered all flags in Iowa to fly at half-staff to honor two soldiers killed in Syria. 29-year-old Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard of Marshalltown, Iowa, and 25-year-old Sgt. Edgar Brian Torrestovar of Grimes, Iowa were killed in an enemy attack Saturday in Palmyra, Syria. A U.S. civilian interpreter was also killed and three other guardsmen were injured in the attack. Flags will remain at half-staff until the final soldier is interred.

ORIGNAL STORY:

An eastern Iowa police chief has announced that his son was one of two U.S. service members from Iowa killed in an ambush Saturday in Syria. Chief Jeffrey Bunn of the Meskwaki Nation Police Department stated in a social media post this morning that his son Nate Howard was one of the two Iowa Army National Guard soldiers killed in action. Bunn wrote that his son “loved what he was doing and would be the first in and last out, no one left behind.” Military authorities said an American civilian interpreter also was killed in the attack. U.S. Central Command said three service members were also wounded in the ambush by a lone member of the Islamic State group. The Meskwaki Nation Police Department is based in Tama, Iowa.