Choas and disorder among mercenaries in Libya after suffering heavy losses
There is now chaos among the Syrian mercenaries that Turkey sent to Libya in order to support the forces of the Government of National Accord in its war against the national army.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that this chaos came after the difficult conditions experienced by mercenaries in Libya, and the failure of Turkey to pay the agreed funds, in addition to the death and injury of a large number of them in clashes against the national army.
Death Toll of Mercenaries
The observatory confirmed that the death toll of the Syrian mercenaries belonging to the Turkish government amounted to 339, including 20 children under the age of 18, and that among the dead were the leaders of groups within those factions.
Despite this toll, Turkey continues to recruit and transport mercenaries to Libyan territory.
The Syrian Observatory reported that the current numbers of mercenaries sent by Turkey to Libya is estimated at 11,200 mercenaries, while the number of recruits who arrived in the Turkish camps to receive training amounted to about 2300.
Recruitment Steps
The SOHR mentioned that the first steps in the recruitment process are to establish volunteer offices on which the pro-Turkish Syrian factions, aiming to attract and recruit young Syrians and send them to fight in Libyan territory.
The second step is based on material motivation and the provision of temptations, as the mercenaries have signed contracts that include payment of salaries of 2000 dollars per month, compensation of 50.000 dollars in the event of serious injuries, and 100,000 dollars for the family of those killed on the frontlines, in addition to promises to grant them Turkish citizenship.
The third step is to “brainwash” the mercenaries by deluding them that they will be used in combat operations carried out against Russian soldiers in Libya in retaliation for their practices in Syria, and the fourth is to pay an “advance” to the mercenaries and transport them by air or sea to Libya.
Exploitation of the Poor and Children
The sources of the Syrian Observatory indicated that Turkey is taking advantage of the extreme poverty of the Syrian people to send them to Tripoli to fight alongside the GNA, as Ankara lures them with money in exchange for their recruitment and sending them as mercenaries to fight in Libya.
To focus on the issue of child recruitment, reliable sources confirmed to the Observatory that these children go from Idlib and the northern countryside of Aleppo to Afrin under the pretext of work, and some of them go without the knowledge of their relatives, to be recruited in Afrin by the factions loyal to Turkey, and send them to Libya, after issuing false documents with false information about The date and place of their birth.
Eyewitnesses in the Euphrates Shield area confirmed to the observatory that opposition leaders recruit Syrian children for $ 3,000, and are then trained to carry and use weapons in training camps for children and adolescents run by opposition factions.
Why Turkey IS Recruiting Mercenaries?
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights attributed Turkey’s resort to recruiting Syrian mercenaries and sending them to Tripoli, fearing that the popularity of Erdogan’s regime may decline due to participation in useless foreign battles, and Turkey’s desire not to lose military personnel in the battle of Libya, in addition to the support for the GNA to confront the national army.
Turkey also seeks, through the recruitment of mercenaries, to get rid of armed elements “wreaking corruption” in the countryside of Aleppo, jihadists and groups classified on the terrorist list, and the presence of the Turkmenistan factions in Syria has facilitated the recruitment process.
The Observatory indicated that Turkey believes that the recruitment of mercenaries keeps it away from international responsibility if the international community decides to hold the parties involved in the Libyan war accountable, and that Turkey has used Libyan lands to test and market its weapons in North Africa.
Source: Choas and disorder among mercenaries in Libya after suffering heavy losses | 218 News