Some Iowa National Guard soldiers are returning home from the Middle East nearly two months after two of their fellow soldiers were killed in Syria.
Approximately 250 soldiers assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division arrived back in the United States this weekend as part of a phased return, the Iowa National Guard announced on Sunday, Feb. 1. The brigade began deploying to Iraq and Syria in late May 2025 for Operation Inherent Resolve to advise and assist forces tasked with “defeat(ing) ISIS.”
Iowa has nearly 1,800 soldiers deployed throughout the region as part of Operation Inherent Resolve.
“Some are returning earlier because their specific mission requirements have concluded, while others will remain deployed to continue essential responsibilities, including partner support and base security,” according to the Guard’s release, which did not say when all were expected to return to the United States. “This phased return is based on mission needs, personnel requirements, and transportation availability.”
The Guard said it is coordinating welcome home celebrations and expects to hold them in Sioux City and Des Moines over the next two weeks.
During Operation Inherent Resolve, Iowa National Guard Staff Sgts. William Nathaniel “Nate” Howard, 29, Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, and a civilian interpreter, Ayad Mansoor Sakat, of Michigan, were killed in Palmyra, Syria on Dec. 13 by an attacker who targeted a convoy of American and Syrian forces before being shot dead.
Gov. Kim Reynolds visited the Guard members in January during a five-day trip that included stops in Syria, Jordan, Iraq and Kuwait, according to a news release from the governor’s office. Reynolds awarded a Purple Heart to an Iowa soldier wounded during the Dec. 13 attack.
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