Two British Soldiers Captured in Syria: Report

April, 29, 2003.

LONDON (AFP) Two British soldiers were captured and held by Syrian forces after crossing the border into Iraq's neighbour.

The men, who were reported to be members of the Special Boat Service (SBS), were said to have been held for five days and have since been released from custody, Britain's domestic Press Association news agency said quoting unnamed defence sources.

Britain's defence ministry and Foreign Office refused to comment on the reports.

"Two British soldiers were held in Syria but have since been released. It is not known why they were in Syria," a defence source told the Press Association.

Continued.

According to the Daily Mirror tabloid, the men were part of a top secret operation to hunt down former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and identify other key coalition targets.

The newspaper said that officially the men were never listed as missing in action and news of their capture has only emerged since their release.

A few days after coalition forces rumbled into Baghdad to topple Saddam's regime, teams of Britain's elite Special Air Service (SAS) and SBS forces were then despatched towards the Syrian border to cut off any escape route from Iraq, the newspaper said.

En route an eight man team from the SBS were said to have come under heavy fire from Iraqi forces.

Six were reported to have been rescued while the remaining two were later held at gunpoint after straying across the border into Syria.

"The lads were only doing their job. It was the end of a very fraught mission. In operations like this, black and white rules can quickly become grey," said an SBS source quoted in The Daily Mirror.

US-led forces fear that a number of Saddam's henchmen fled to Syria as the Iraqi regime began to crumble and have warned Damascus that it faces sanctions if it harbours any of those it lists as wanted.

©AFP

http://www.wash.afp.com/english/home/

<  Anti-war Crowd Demands Proof of WMDs | US Troops shot dead 17 Iraqi Protestors  >