UPDATED: Has the US Invaded Syria?

Former Ambassador Dan Simpson declared that the US has invaded Syria in an article he wrote for the Toledo Blade on October 19, 2005.

Is this the Iraq war’s equivalent of actions in Cambodia during the Vietnam war?

Simpson does not provide details. It had been widely reported on October 14, 2005 that coalition troops had clashed with Syrians on the border in order to stem the flow of possible insurgents from the country, but those reports do not include movements into Syria itself. Yet, Simpson’s words are definitive.

more below…

AS I suspected six months ago, and U.S. military and Bush Administration civilian officials confirmed, U.S. forces have invaded Syria and engaged in combat with Syrian forces.

An unknown number of Syrians are acknowledged to have been killed; the number of Americans – if any – who have died so far has not yet been revealed by the U.S. sources, who, by the way, insist on remaining faceless and nameless.
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On the U.S. side, no declaration of war preceded the invasion of Syria, in spite of the requirements of the War Powers Act of 1973. There is no indication that Congress was involved in the decision to go in. If members were briefed, none of them has chosen to share that important information with the American people.

Syria is facing increasing pressure from the US and the UN in advance of a UN report about the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri. Syrian government officials have denied any involvement in the murder. Possible sanctions are being discussed in order to further isolate the country and, on Wednesday, Condoleezza Rice said the US has not ruled out military action against Syria.

Considering the fact that this so-called US invasion of Syria has not been reported by the Syrian government or members of congress, it’s quite likely that Ambassador Simpson may be making more of the border clashes than is necessary. However, it’s no secret that the US wants regime change in Syria and that it has constantly complained about Assad’s inability to stem the flow of insurgents into Iraq from his country.

If the US does invade Syria or if the UN report on the assassination fingers Assad, which is reportedly a tough case to prove, the future of Syria is very uncertain as it is quite possible that Assad would be replaced by a hard-liner who will be even less cooperative than Assad has been. That could throw the country into unpredictable chaos, further destabilizing the already fragile situation in the Middle East.

Update [2005-10-20 23:15:33 by catnip]:: The UN report on the assassination of Rafik al-Hariri has been released and implicates “senior Syrian and Lebanese officials” while faulting the Syrian government for not cooperating fully with the investigation and charging that the Syrian Foreign Minister actually misled investigators.

But the 54-page report said the full picture would require a more extensive investigation, and called for the international community to help Lebanese authorities continue the probe. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan announced late yesterday that he will extend the Mehlis mandate to Dec. 15.

The Bush administration said it would not immediately comment. “We intend to read and study it tonight very carefully and decide tomorrow in consultations with other interested governments what the next steps will be,” said U.N. Ambassador John R. Bolton. Diplomats expect the report to lead the Security Council to consider action, however.