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Family IDs one of two Iowa National Guard soldiers killed in Syria
Two Iowa National Guard members were killed in Syria in an attack blamed on the Islamic State; the Guard has not yet officially released the names
Dec. 14, 2025 6:36 pm, Updated: Dec. 15, 2025 9:53 am
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One of two Iowa Army National Guard soldiers killed in an attack Saturday in central Syria has been publicly identified by family members, while the Iowa National Guard has not yet officially released the names of the fallen service members.
The Iowa National Guard said the names of the two soldiers would be released only after next-of-kin notifications are complete and authorization is granted under Department of War policy.
Meskwaki Nation Police Department Chief Jeffrey Bunn confirmed in a social media post that his son, Nate Howard, was one of the soldiers killed.
Howard was among two Iowa Army National Guard members killed when a lone attacker, believed to be linked to the Islamic State group ISIS, opened fire near a military post in central Syria, according to U.S. officials. A U.S. civilian interpreter also was killed in the attack. Three additional Iowa Guard members were injured.
Howard’s father, Meskwaki Nation Police Department Chief Jeffrey Bunn, shared the news on Facebook, saying he and his wife, Misty, had received “that visit from Army Commanders you never want to have.”
“Our son Nate was one of the Soldiers that paid the ultimate sacrifice for all of us, to keep us all safer,” Bunn wrote. “He loved what he was doing and would be the first in and last out, no one left behind.”
Bunn asked for prayers for deployed service members and ended the post with a message to his son: “We will see you again son, until then we have it from here.”
Tama County Sheriff Casey Schmidt also confirmed Howard’s identity in a statement Sunday, calling the loss “deeply personal” for the community.
“One of those service members was Nate Howard. An Iowan. A Guardsman. A son who did not come home,” Schmidt wrote. “We also mourn the loss of the other Iowa National Guardsman who was killed. Their lives and their service matter.”
Schmidt emphasized the toll the attack has taken on families and communities across Iowa, calling the deaths a reminder that military service carries real and ongoing risks.
“These losses are not headlines,” Schmidt wrote. “They are families, co-workers, and communities left carrying the weight. ISIS is evil. That is not political. That is reality. Our service members are still standing in harm’s way because that evil still exists. Acknowledging that matters, and so does remembering why they serve.
“I am deeply thankful for the men and women of our armed forces, and I believe we do not do enough for them,” Schmidt continued. “They accept risks most people never have to think about.”
Schmidt said the loss underscores how Iowans respond in moments of grief, with people showing up for one another in quiet, steady ways. He said Tama County stands with the Bunn family, Howard’s wife, Arianna, and loved ones, as well as the Iowa National Guard and all service members in harm’s way, adding that the community shares in the grief and supports one another as they remember those lost.
Gov. Kim Reynolds and Iowa National Guard leaders said Saturday that the soldiers were ambushed during a “key leader engagement” in the city of Palmyra as part of their assigned mission in ongoing counter-ISIS and counterterrorism efforts in the region, Guard officials said. The attacker was killed during the incident, and the investigation remains ongoing, according to U.S. military officials.
Two of the wounded soldiers remained in critical but stable condition Saturday and were being treated at a hospital at an air base in Amman, Jordan, Iowa National Guard Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Stephen Osborn told reporters. A third soldier with lesser injuries was treated and returned to base, Osborn said.
The attack marked the deadliest assault on U.S. forces in Syria in more than a year and occurred on the 389th anniversary of the National Guard’s founding.
About 1,800 Iowa National Guard soldiers from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division, began deploying to the Middle East last summer in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, part of the U.S. mission to advise, assist and enable partner forces in the enduring defeat of ISIS.
Although ISIS was defeated on the battlefield in 2019, U.S. officials and the United Nations say the group maintains sleeper cells capable of carrying out deadly attacks. The United Nations says the group still has between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq, the Associated Press reported.
Iowa National Guard spokesperson Jackie Schmillen said Guard soldiers are serving as part of a rotational deployment to the Middle East that has been ongoing for the past eight years, with different national guard states and active-duty units consistently taking part in fulfilling the mission.
“Our Soldiers are contributing to this mission by joining coalition forces to provide security, support partner nations, and assist efforts to maintain stability in the region,” Schmillen said in a statement.
President Donald Trump has pledged retaliation, calling the attack an act of terrorism by the Islamic State group.
The Iowa National Guard said it continues to provide support to the families of the fallen and the injured soldiers as the investigation proceeds.
Gazette Des Moines Bureau Chief Erin Murphy and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
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