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An American Freedom Fighter in the Libyan Civil War: Part 1

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As Americans, especially those in military and intelligence circles, we have an obsession with giving everything a name or acronym.  Everyone gets a label and category.  I asked Matthew VanDyke what he was doing in the middle of the Libyan Civil War.  Was he a mercenary, a private security contractor, or a foreign volunteer?  His answer was straight forward and to the point: he was a freedom fighter.

While the Huffington Post and others mistakenly reported that he was a journalist, Matt will tell you that he was anything but.  He was conducting a recon mission when he was captured by the Libyan military and imprisoned.  Once freed, he joined back up with the rebels and manned the unweildly Soviet DShK machine gun on a jeep that looked like something straight out of Mad Max, trading fire and getting into skirmishes with Gaddafi’s forces on the front lines of the war.

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  • genefarnsworth

    And not that we tossed out the head dog keeping the animals under control all is well!!!! Good fuckin job !

  • green beret retired

    Is Matt the guy heading that volunteer training group working with the NPU in Iraq?  They are an Assyrian Christian militia under the Assyrian Democratic Party. They claim to have 4,000 signed, but apparently only have weapons for 500 or 600 troop.

  • blkreggren

    Wow, this guy, for whatever he is and whatever motivates him, put his money where his mouth was. Do we not fight well, when we fight for friends?

  • blkreggren

    Wow, this guy, for whatever he is and whatever motivates him, put his money where his mouth was. Do we not fight well, when we fight for friends?

  • ArcticWarrior

     @Old PH2  @LCpl X
     Yeah he was but its entertaining to think what if this guy caught a whisper of where he was by sheer luck, and had been the man on the ground right time right place…thats good stuff.