ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV on Monday denounced the “antisemitic violence” behind the Sydney Hanukkah massacre as he prayed for the victims and the “gift of peace and fraternity” this holiday season.
Leo also issued a strong anti-abortion message during an audience with the donors of the Vatican’s Christmas decorations, which he said were a sign of “faith and hope.”
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Pope Leo XIV, center, shakes hands with Sister Raffaella Petrini, President of the Vatican City State at the end of an audience with donors of the Christmas tree and nativity scene set up in St. Peter's Square, in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Sister Raffaella Petrini, left, President of the Vatican City State walks at the end of an audience with Pope Leo XIV with donors of the Christmas tree and nativity scene set up in St. Peter's Square, in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Pope Leo XIV hugs a child at the end of an audience with donors of the Christmas tree and nativity scene set up in St. Peter's Square, in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Pope Leo XIV prays in front of Nacimiento Gaudium, a nativity scene set in the Paul VI Hall adorned with 28,000 ribbons representing lives saved from abortion according to Catholic organizations, during an audience with donors of the Christmas tree and of the nativity scenes, at the Vatican Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Ribbons representing lives saved from abortion according to Catholic organizations are seen on Nacimiento Gaudium, a nativity scene set in the Paul VI Hall during an audience led by Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
“We pray for those who suffer from war and violence, in particular today I want to entrust to the Lord the victims of the terrorist attack in Syndey against the Jewish community.
“Enough of these forms of antisemitic violence!” he said. “We must eliminate hatred from our hearts.”
At least 15 people died in the attack on Sydney’s Bondi Beach, where hundreds had gathered for a “Chanukah by the Sea ” event celebrating the start of the Jewish festival. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the massacre an act of antisemitic terrorism.
Leo echoed his prayers in an official telegram of condolence sent to the archbishop of Sydney, Most. Rev. Anthony Fisher.
He prayed “with renewed hope that those tempted to violence will undergo conversion and seek the path of peace and solidarity," said the telegram signed by the Vatican secretary of state.
In his remarks at the Vatican, Leo said the evergreen fir trees that were donated by various Italian regions “are a sign of life and recall the hope that isn’t lacking even in the winter cold.”
Another sign of life, he said, was reflected in the Nativity scene in the Vatican’s audience hall, which was donated by Costa Rica. The creche featured 28,000 ribbons representing embryos that weren’t aborted.
“Each of these 28,000 colored ribbons that decorate the scene represent a life saved from abortion thanks to the prayer and support provided by Catholic organizations to many mothers in need,” Leo said.
He thanked the artist for the message urging that “life is protected from conception.”
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Pope Leo XIV, center, shakes hands with Sister Raffaella Petrini, President of the Vatican City State at the end of an audience with donors of the Christmas tree and nativity scene set up in St. Peter's Square, in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Sister Raffaella Petrini, left, President of the Vatican City State walks at the end of an audience with Pope Leo XIV with donors of the Christmas tree and nativity scene set up in St. Peter's Square, in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Pope Leo XIV hugs a child at the end of an audience with donors of the Christmas tree and nativity scene set up in St. Peter's Square, in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Pope Leo XIV prays in front of Nacimiento Gaudium, a nativity scene set in the Paul VI Hall adorned with 28,000 ribbons representing lives saved from abortion according to Catholic organizations, during an audience with donors of the Christmas tree and of the nativity scenes, at the Vatican Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Ribbons representing lives saved from abortion according to Catholic organizations are seen on Nacimiento Gaudium, a nativity scene set in the Paul VI Hall during an audience led by Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The two Iowa National Guard members killed in a weekend attack in Syria that the U.S. military blamed on the Islamic State group were identified Monday and remembered as dedicated soldiers.
The U.S. Army named them as Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds ordered all flags in Iowa to fly at half-staff in their honor, saying, “We are grateful for their service and deeply mourn their loss.”
The Pentagon’s chief spokesman, Sean Parnell, has said a U.S. civilian working as an interpreter also was killed. Three other Guard members were wounded in the attack, the Iowa National Guard said Monday, with two of them in stable condition and the other in good condition.
The attack was a major test for the rapprochement between the United States and Syria since the ouster of autocratic leader Bashar Assad a year ago, coming as the U.S. military is expanding its cooperation with Syrian security forces. Hundreds of American troops are deployed in eastern Syria as part of a coalition fighting IS.
The shooting Saturday in the Syrian desert near the historic city of Palmyra also wounded members of the country's security forces, and the gunman was killed. The assailant had joined Syria’s internal security forces as a base security guard two months ago and recently was reassigned amid suspicions that he might be affiliated with IS, a Syrian official said.
The man stormed a meeting between U.S. and Syrian security officials who were having lunch together and opened fire after clashing with Syrian guards, Interior Ministry spokesperson Nour al-Din al-Baba said Sunday.
Al-Baba acknowledged that it was “a major security breach” but said that in the year since Assad’s fall, “there have been many more successes than failures” by security forces.
The Army said Monday that the incident is under investigation. Military officials and President Donald Trump have blamed the attack on an IS member.
“Our hearts go out to their families, and we lift them up in prayer for strength and comfort during this time of grief,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Monday on social media. “The United States of America will avenge these fallen Americans with overwhelming force.”
Trump reiterated his promise of retaliation from over the weekend, telling reporters at the White House on Monday that IS will “be hit hard.”
He also reaffirmed his support for Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, saying the Syrian government is not to blame for the deadly attack.
“This had nothing to do with him,” Trump said of al-Sharaa. “This is a part of Syria that they really don’t have much control over. And it was a surprise. He feels very badly about it. He’s working on it. He's a strong man.”
Trump welcomed al-Sharaa, who led the lightning insurgency that toppled Assad’s rule, to the White House for a historic meeting last month.
Meanwhile, Torres-Tovar and Howard were remembered as “cherished members” of the Iowa National Guard family, Stephen Osborn, adjutant general, said in a statement.
“Our focus now is providing unwavering support to their families through this unimaginable time and ensuring the legacy of these two heroes is never forgotten,” Osborn said.
Luis Corona has known Torres-Tovar since middle school, when they played soccer together during recess. They drifted apart while attending different high schools but reconnected after Corona enlisted and saw a familiar face upon joining his Iowa unit after bootcamp.
“I was very nervous, very new to the Army. I didn't know what to expect. And just to see Edgar there, it was a big relief, a huge weight off my shoulders, like, OK, I won't be alone in this,” Corona told The Associated Press.
From then on, he said, their bond grew into a brotherhood.
Torres-Tovar's defining trait was his selflessness, Corona said. He was remembered as a role model to his younger siblings and all the newly enlisted soldiers in the unit.
Corona learned of his friend's death while reading the news. “No!” he shouted at the top of his lungs in what he later described as an expression of “disbelief, shock, sadness, anger, just every form of distraught you can think of.”
Howard had wanted to be a soldier since he was a young boy, according to Jeffrey Bunn, Howard’s stepfather and chief of the Meskwaki Nation Police Department in Tama, Iowa, about 60 miles (97 kilometers) northeast of Des Moines.
Howard “loved what he was doing and would be the first in and last out,” Bunn wrote Saturday on the department’s Facebook page.
Howard also was a loving husband and an “amazing man of faith,” Bunn said, adding that Howard's younger brother, a staff sergeant in the Iowa National Guard, would escort “Nate” back to Iowa.
Howard was inspired by his grandfather’s service and wanted to serve for 20 years, according to an April post on a Facebook page dedicated to sharing stories of the unit. He had served for over 11 years.
Fingerhut reported from Des Moines. Associated Press writers Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City and Abby Sewell in Beirut, Lebanon, contributed to this report.
This undated photo released by the Iowa National Guard shows Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard. (Iowa National Guard via AP)
This undated photo released by the Iowa National Guard shows Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar. (Iowa National Guard via AP)
This undated combo photo created with images released by the Iowa National Guard shows Sgts. William Nathaniel Howard, left, and Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar. (Iowa National Guard via AP)
