U.S.
military pays Syrian rebels up to $400 per month: Pentagon
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[June 23, 2015]
By David Alexander
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Syrian rebels
receiving U.S. military training to battle Islamic State militants are
being paid $250 to $400 per month, depending on their skills,
performance and leadership position, the Pentagon said on Monday.
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It was not immediately clear how many Syrian rebels were currently
being paid. Army Colonel Steve Warren, a Defense Department
spokesman, said last week that up to 200 Syrian fighters were
undergoing training. A further 1,500 have completed the necessary
screening.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in May that Syrian fighters
participating in the U.S.-led mission would receive "some
compensation," but he gave no figures.
Navy Commander Elissa Smith, a Pentagon spokeswoman, said trainees
were each receiving a stipend.
Some 6,000 Syrians have volunteered to participate in the U.S.
effort to train and equip a politically moderate Syrian military
force. Warren said last week the effort had moved more slowly than
expected due to complications vetting volunteers and bringing them
out of Syria for the training.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/Jun/23/images/ads/current/napa_bch1-3108.png) Navy Captain Scott Rye, a spokesman for the Combined Joint
Interagency Task Force-Syria, said a number had quit or been
excluded, including a group who left together about 10 days ago.
Reasons for leaving included "everything from volunteers showing up
without ID (identity) papers to being underage, to being unfit for
training," Rye said.
He declined to say how many fighters had left in total, but said:
"The group that quit all quit at the same time after training for
several weeks. This was unusual, and I would deem it a one-time
event."
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He said it was not indicative of the overall program, adding that
more than 1,000 new volunteers had signed up for the program since
the group withdrew.
Rye denied a news report that the group withdrew because its members
did not want to sign a contract agreeing not to fight the Syrian
government of President Bashar al-Assad.
He said that, while U.S. officials had been clear the program was to
train fighters to combat Islamic State, the only document
participants had to sign was one committing them to promote respect
for human rights and the rule of law, a mandate issued by the U.S.
Congress.
(Reporting by David Alexander. Editing by Andre Grenon)
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