Monday, February 26, 2007
More Kurdish soldiers arrive in Baghdad
Security
(AP) About 130 fresh Iraqi troops from Irbil flew into Baghdad on Sunday to join the fight for the nation's capital — with the promise of a $200 bonus, nearly a month's pay. The troops represented a fraction of the expected influx of some 8,000 Iraqi reinforcements from the north, the Shiite south and the insurgent stronghold of Anbar province west of Baghdad. The drafting of troops from the north — mostly former Kurdish guerrillas who fought for decades against Saddam Hussein's regime — to participate in the security crackdown in the capital has raised concerns as many speak no Arabic and are unfamiliar with the territory and urban warfare.
Many Kurds also refused to leave their autonomous region to fight in far-off Baghdad. But Lt. Gen. Ali Ghadan, Iraq's ground forces commander, said the Kurds and other troops coming from outside Baghdad had a powerful incentive. Each would receive a $200 bonus in addition to their regular salaries and would only be deployed for three months, then allowed to go home.
The minimum salary for Iraqi soldiers is nearly $300 per month, although some get food allowances, according to the Defense Ministry. Ghadan said the troops would get another bonus of the same amount if they signed on for another tour after their first deployment. A brigade from Sulaimaniyah, also in the Kurdish north, has reached Baghdad, but it is only 1,000-men strong, not the expected 3,000.
Many Kurds also refused to leave their autonomous region to fight in far-off Baghdad. But Lt. Gen. Ali Ghadan, Iraq's ground forces commander, said the Kurds and other troops coming from outside Baghdad had a powerful incentive. Each would receive a $200 bonus in addition to their regular salaries and would only be deployed for three months, then allowed to go home.
The minimum salary for Iraqi soldiers is nearly $300 per month, although some get food allowances, according to the Defense Ministry. Ghadan said the troops would get another bonus of the same amount if they signed on for another tour after their first deployment. A brigade from Sulaimaniyah, also in the Kurdish north, has reached Baghdad, but it is only 1,000-men strong, not the expected 3,000.
Labels: Baghdad, Kurdish soldiers, Lt. Gen. Ali Ghadan
