PHP Syntax Error

I was hoping if someone could tell me why I am getting this error:
“Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_VARIABLE in /home/allirens/public_html/testblog/wp-content/themes/hacdc/index.php on line 9”

I can’t see anything with the syntax that jumps out at me as being wrong. Here is my index.php code:

<?php get_header(); ?>
<div id="sidebar">
<?php get_sidebar(); ?>
</div>
<div id="entries">
<?php if ( have_posts() ) : while ( have_posts() ) : the_post(); ?>
<?php the_title(); ?>
<?php the_content('Continue Reading'); ?>
Posted on <?php the_time('F jS, Y') ?> by <?php the_author() ?>. <a href="<?php the_permalink() ?>" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link to <?php the_title(); ?>">link</a>.<br />
Tags: <?php$posttags = get_the_tags();if ($posttags) {foreach($posttags as $tag) {echo $tag->name . ' '; }}?>
<?php endwhile; else: ?>
<p><?php _e('Sorry, no posts matched your criteria.'); ?></p>
<?php endif; ?>
<?php get_footer(); ?>

Thanks!