Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, 18 December (H.S.): President Donald Trump presided over a poignant dignified transfer on Wednesday at Dover Air Force Base, honoring two Iowa National Guard sergeants and a civilian interpreter killed in a brazen ISIS ambush in Syria's Palmyra region four days prior.
The solemn procession unfolded beneath a leaden sky, as flag-draped transfer cases bearing the remains were borne by a carry team from an arriving aircraft to awaiting vehicles bound for the base's mortuary.
This ritual, far from ceremonial pomp, embodies the quiet reverence due those who perish in distant theaters of conflict.
The attack transpired on Saturday, December 13, when a lone ISIS-affiliated gunman struck a U.S. convoy during counter-terrorism operations under Operation Inherent Resolve, claiming the lives of Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown—both assigned to the 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry Regiment.
Civilian interpreter Ayad Mansoor Sakat, hailing from Macomb, Michigan, also perished alongside them, while three other service members suffered wounds treatable at the Al-Tanf garrison. Syrian state media corroborated injuries to two local personnel, noting the assailant—a recent recruit to their security forces—was neutralized in the ensuing firefight.
Trump, accompanied by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, and Senators Joni Ernst and Chuck Grassley, first convened privately with bereaved kin before saluting the procession—a gesture he has deemed among his gravest presidential duties.
First Lady Melania Trump had planned to attend but was compelled to withdraw, per White House disclosures . This marked Trump's inaugural such observance since his January 2025 inauguration, underscoring persistent U.S. commitments against ISIS remnants in post-Assad Syria .
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
