The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

Libyan crisis | Death toll of Turkish-backed Syrian mercenaries jumps to 279, including 13 children and number of recruits reaches 12,000

Syrian Observatory activists have documented a spike in the death toll of the Ankara-backed Syrian mercenaries  killed in the ongoing battles with the Libyan National Army in Libya.

The Syrian Observatory has documented the killing of 11 of Turkish-backed mercenaries in the past few hours and days on several frontlines in Libya, bringing the total death toll of Turkish-backed factions to 279 fighters, including 13 children under the age of eighteen.

Meanwhile, new batch of mercenaries have arrived in Libya, comprising some 260 mercenaries. According to SOHR statistics, the number of recruits who arrived in Libya has risen to 8,510 mercenaries, including a group of non-Syrian mercenaries, while nearly 3,450 others arrived in Turkey to undergo training courses.

Of the total number of recruits, some 120 children between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, have been recruited to fight in Libya, the majority of whom are of “Al-Sultan Murad” Division, by offering material incentives in an attempt to exploit their difficult living situation and poverty.