Syria investigates deadly attack on US forces, US names 2 National Guard soldiers as victims

On December 15, the Iowa National Guard released the names of two US soldiers who were killed in a terrorist attack in Syria on December 13. “Our entire National Guard family mourns the loss of Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, Iowa-the Iowa Army National Guard Soldiers who were ambushed and killed in Syria,” General Steven Nordhaus, chief of the National Guard Bureau, wrote on X.

The attack has placed a spotlight on the US role in Syria and the status of the ongoing multinational campaign against the Islamic State. Syrian officials have strongly condemned the attack and moved to shore up diplomatic ties with the US.

Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al Shaibani spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on December 14. “Foreign Minister al-Shaibani offered condolences and reiterated the commitment of the Syrian government to degrade and destroy the shared threat of ISIS [the Islamic State]. The United States will hold all who hurt and threaten Americans accountable,” a readout from the US State Department stated.

“On behalf of the Syrian Arab Republic, I extend my sincere sympathy to the families of the fallen soldiers and to the American people. Syria unequivocally condemns this attack and reaffirms its commitment to preserving stability and security in Syria and across the region,” Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa said in a message to US President Donald Trump, according to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

Syria’s Interior Ministry conducted a security operation in the wake of the incident, according to SANA, and described the perpetrator of the attack on US troops as an “ISIS-affiliated operative.” SANA noted that “the operation was conducted in full coordination with the General Intelligence Directorate and the international coalition forces, and was based on precise intelligence information. It [the Interior Ministry] said five suspected individuals were arrested and immediately placed under investigation.”

Syria’s investigation of the attack and retaliatory operations took place as the country faced various threats. In northern Idlib province, four members of the Syrian security forces were killed on December 14, according to the Kurdish Rudaw Media Network. On December 15, the Syrian News Channel reported that the victims of the Idlib attack were Interior Ministry personnel, and the Syrian government has described the incident as terroristic in nature but ascribed it to “criminal groups outside the law.”

In eastern Syria, where the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are in control, there are also Islamic State threats. On December 14, the SDF wrote on its official X account that its forces had detained four members of an Islamic State cell on December 1. “The operation came as part of the ongoing efforts of the Syrian Democratic Forces to pursue cells of the terrorist organization ‘ISIS’ and prevent them from carrying out criminal acts targeting military and security forces and civilian institutions, and undermining security and stability in the region,” the SDF stated. It was unclear why the SDF waited two weeks to post the details of the operation.

The Syrian Democratic Council, the political wing of the SDF, condemned the December 13 attack on US forces in a statement. “The Kurdish-led body [SDC] also reiterated its call for the implementation of a March 10 agreement between Kurdish forces and Damascus as a key step toward restoring stability,” Rudaw Media Network noted.

The attack on US forces has led to discussion about what comes next for US-Syria cooperation. Myles Caggins, former spokesperson for Operation Inherent Resolve, the US-led campaign against the Islamic State, spoke to the Syrian News Channel about the incident and its repercussions. “Caggins noted that the United States has a specific, ongoing mission to support security forces in fighting ISIS inside Syria, and this will be done in cooperation with the Syrian government. The former spokesman for the international coalition stressed the need to integrate the SDF forces with the [Syrian] Ministry of Defense,” the report stated. North Press Agency, which primarily covers developments in Syria, noted that US lawmakers are “split on Syria mission after deadly Palmyra attack.”

Reporting from Israel, Seth J. Frantzman is an adjunct fellow at FDD and a contributor to FDD’s Long War Journal. He is the senior Middle East correspondent and analyst at The Jerusalem Post, and author of The October 7 War: Israel’s Battle for Security in Gaza (2024).