US soldier facebook post says US troops involved in Syria

This was originally written and posted on East county magazine

http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/node/8423

On January 2, a soldier in San Diego linked to Special Forces posted on his Facebook page that he was deploying to Syria. This tantalizing piece of information startled readers, leading many to ask: does our country have troops in Syria and if so, why?

The likely presence of U.S. special forces inside Syria, a nation descending into civil war, may come as a surprise to the American public. But it’s no secret to many in Congress, where testimony before the Armed Services Committee as of last year by a top military official confirmed that the US has Special forces in over 20 Mideast countries including Syria, The Nation reported in 2010.

The Facebook postings by Polk raise additional questions. Why would a special forces soldier, if in fact on a mission in a hostile location, reveal the destination online? That answer may never be known, since according to a family member's posts, he lost his life overseas and his body is en route home.

As for why the U.S. might have special forces inside Syria, however, our research has found several intriguing possibilities.

Numerous foreign news accounts have recently claimed that Western special forces are operating inside Syria, suggesting potential motives that range from the U.S. offering humanitarian aid to speculation that some Western special forces may be helping armed insurgents. (Several are linked to below.)

Please note that the U.S. soldier who posted on facebook was later killed in action in Syria and returned to the U.S. in a body bag. Hence he cannot make further claims of his stunt in Syria where the U.S. is not supposed to have 'foot' soldiers.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/OccupySanDiego/permalink/214787705272221/