Ayad Mansour Kyriakos Sakkat, an Assyrian, was killed in the terrorist attack against US forces in Palmyra on 13 December, The Detroit News has reported. Two US soldiers were also killed in the attack and a number were left injured.
Sakkat, 54, was working as an interpreter for the US armed forces in Syria through an employment as an independent contractor for Virginia-based Valiant Integrated Services.
His origins are from the town of Baghdede in the Nineveh Plain Region of Northern Iraq. Dina Qiryaqoz, the daughter of Sakkat, said Wednesday in a statement that her father worked for the U.S. Army during the invasion of Iraq from 2003 to 2007.
He brought his family to the United States through the Special Immigrant Visa program, where they made their home in Michigan.
"Ayad will be remembered for his generosity, integrity, sense of humor, and the deep pride he carried for his family," his family has written in his obituary. "He found joy in simple moments, listening to Fairouz in the mornings, sharing food, walking with friends, and offering kindness to everyone around him. His life was shaped by service, his heart by love, and his legacy by the strength of the family he cherished."
Chairwoman Lisa McClain, representing Michigan's 9th District, commented his death on her Facebook page: "I'm devastated to learn that Ayad Mansoor Sakat, the interpreter killed in the ISIS attack on our National Guardsmen in Syria, was from Macomb Township in my district," McClain posted.
President Donald Trump paid his respects Wednesday to the two Iowa National Guard members and Sakkat, joining their grieving families at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware as their remains were brought back.
Sakat is survived by his wife and four adult children.
The Assyria Post
