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 individual presumed responsible for the Saturday murder of American troops in Syria was set to be fired from his job the next day for his extremist views, officials said.

The attack in the central city of Palmyra marked the first U.S. casualties in Syria since the Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad was ousted from power a year ago, and underscored the fragile security la...