(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The Pentagon has admitted that it has more troops deployed in Iraq and Syria than what it previously disclosed to the public—the latest in a long list of Defense Department lies about its activity in that region.
The Pentagon’s admission about Syria was made last week by Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, who reportedly said the true number of troops there is 2,000—not the 900 that officials have reported for years. Then, on Monday, Ryder also said there were more troops in Iraq than the 2,500 figure that he’s quoted for years. However, Ryder wouldn’t disclose exactly how many more troops are there.
“In addition to the approximately 900 baseline troops, there are also approximately 1,100 US military personnel in Syria that deploy for shorter durations as temporary enablers in support of force protection, transportation, maintenance, or other emerging operational requirements,” Ryder said, as reported by antiwar.com.
🚨 Biden Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder says he "recently learned" there are actually 2,000+ U.S. troops deployed in Syria — far more than the 900 they had previously announced. pic.twitter.com/MKlqO2ZlqS
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) December 19, 2024
“The numbers of these additional temporary forces have fluctuated over the past several years based on mission needs but in general have increased over time as the threat has increased to baseline forces.”
The Pentagon’s revisions come as Donald Trump is set to take office. During his last administration, Pentagon officials lied to Trump about the true number of troops in Syria—defying his orders for a draw-down.
Trump’s orders to withdraw from Syria came in 2018 and again in 2019, and each time officials either resigned in protest or outright deceived the President.
In December 2018, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis resigned over the matter, as did Syria envoy Brett McGurk. And according to DefenseOne.com, military officials lied to Trump about how many troops were there.
“We were always playing shell games to not make clear to our leadership how many troops we had there,” McGurk’s replacement, diplomat Jim Jeffrey, told the publication in November 2020.
Jeffrey added that the actual number of troops in northeast Syria is “a lot more than” the roughly two hundred troops Trump initially agreed to leave there in 2019.
Now, the Biden administration is threatening war with Iran if any of its troops are killed by Iranian-backed militias.
According to the New York Times, Iranian-backed militias had already carried out 140 attacks on American troops in Iraq and Syria as of Thursday, with nearly 70 U.S. personnel wounded, some of them suffering traumatic brain injuries.
“Biden administration officials have regularly debated the proper strategy. They do not want to let such attacks go without a response, but on the other hand do not want to go so far that the conflict would escalate into a full-fledged war, particularly by striking Iran directly,” the Times reported in January.
“They privately say they may have no choice, however, if American troops are killed. That is a red line that has not been crossed, but if the Iranian-backed militias ever have a day of better aim or better luck, it easily could be.”
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.
