By HANNAH FINGERHUT DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The remains of two Iowa National Guard members killed in an attack in the Syrian desert were welcomed back to Des Moines on Wednesday, marking a solemn Christmas Eve for their grieving families. Several loved ones approached the caskets carrying Edgar Br ian Torres-Tovar, 25, and William Nathanial Howard, 29. The families huddled together, comforting one another and wiping away tears. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst and U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn looked on alongside senior leaders of the Iowa National Guard. The remains of Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, one of the two Iowa National Guard members killed in an attack in the Syrian desert, is moved during a dignified transfer at the Des Moines International Airport in Des Moines, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) The remains of Staff Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, Iowa, one of two Iowa National Guard members killed in an attack in the Syrian desert, is moved during a dignified transfer at the Des Moines International Airport in Des Moines, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, from left, Major General Stephen E. Osborn, Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard, Command Sgt. Maj. Matthew Strasser, Command Senior Enlisted Leader, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, salute as the remains of Staff Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, the two Iowa National Guard members killed in an attack in the Syrian desert, are moved during a dignified transfer at the Des Moines International Airport in Des Moines, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) An Iowa National Guard member salutes as the remains of Staff Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, the two Iowa National Guard members killed in an attack in the Syrian desert, are moved during a dignified transfer at the Des Moines International Airport in Des Moines, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) The remains of Staff Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, the two Iowa National Guard members killed in an attack in the Syrian desert, are moved during a dignified transfer at the Des Moines International Airport in Des Moines, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) Show Caption1 of 5The remains of Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, one of the two Iowa National Guard members killed in an attack in the Syrian desert, is moved during a dignified transfer at the Des Moines International Airport in Des Moines, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) Expand The killed guardsmen as well as a U.S. civilian interpreter killed in the Dec. 13 ambush were flown back to the U.S. last week, when President Donald Trump paid his respects and met with the families at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. On Wednesday, escorted by Howard’s step-brother and two other members of the Iowa National Guard, the wooden caskets draped in American flags were lowered from the body of an Iowa Air National Guard aircraft that flew from Sioux City to collect the soldiers’ remains from Delaware. In Des Moines, like at Dover, as part of the solemn transfer ritual, fellow Iowa National Guard members wearing white gloves carried the cases. After the families spent several minutes mourning over their loved ones on the tarmac, the caskets were each loaded into a hearse, one blue and the other black. Related Articles Grand jury declines to indict man in shooting that killed teen at Kentucky State University Call 911 or risk losing the baby? Raids force some immigrants to avoid care Kennedy Center Christmas Eve jazz concert canceled after Trump name added to building After missing deadline, DOJ says it may need a ‘few more weeks’ to finish releasing Epstein files ‘The best gift ever’: Baby is born after the rarest of pregnancies, defying all odds The two soldiers, posthumously promoted to staff sergeant, were members of the 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry Regiment. Their families followed the hearses in a procession to funeral homes in Des Moines and Marshalltown, escorted by Des Moines Police Department and Iowa State Patrol, respectively. Their funerals will take place in the coming days, according to the Iowa National Guard. On the route away from the 132nd Wing at the Des Moines International Airport, dozens of people lined up on the mild December day carrying American flags and paying their respects to the killed soldiers. Ayad Mansoor Sakat, of Macomb, Michigan, a U.S. civilian working as an interpreter, was also killed. He was laid to rest in Michigan over the weekend. Hundreds of U.S. troops are deployed in eastern Syria as part of a coalition fighting the Islamic State group, and Trump promised “very serious retaliation” after the attack. The administration last week proceeded with military strikes in what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth described as a “declaration of vengeance” in a post on social media. Three other Iowa National Guard members were wounded in the attack, one of whom was treated locally. Two others who were evacuated from Syria for medical treatment returned to the U.S. on Dec. 20. ...read more read less