Washington — President Trump participated in a solemn dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Wednesday honoring two members of the Iowa National Guard and an interpreter who were killed in Syria over the weekend.

The two guardsmen killed in the Syrian desert Saturday were Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, according to the U.S. Army. They were members of the 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry Regiment. Ayad Mansoor Sakat, a U.S. civilian from Macomb, Michgian, who was working as an interpreter, was also killed. The Pentagon said an ISIS gunman ambushed them.

On the solemn, silent tarmac of the base, soldiers carried the transfer cases with remains from a plane to awaiting vehicles. The president, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and top military brass saluted and looked ahead. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware also attended. 

The president met privately with the families of the deceased ahead of the transfer. First lady Melania Trump was scheduled to join the event, but a White House official said she could no longer attend. 

This was the first dignified transfer Mr. Trump participated in since taking office in January, although he attended dignified transfer events in his first term.  

The solemn dignified transfer of remains at Dover Air Force Base is meant to honor those who have sacrificed their lives in the service of their country. The remains are transferred to the mortuary facility at Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations at the Dover Air Force Base. 

“The dignified transfer is not a ceremony; rather, it is a solemn movement of the transfer case by a carry team composed of military personnel from the fallen member’s respective service,” Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations says. “A dignified transfer is conducted for every U.S. military member who dies in the theater of operation while in the service of their country.”