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Iran Steps Up Recruitment of Shiite Mercenaries for Syrian War
(Christian Science Monitor) Scott Peterson - Alongside its own troops in Syria, Iran has deployed Shiite mercenary forces of Afghans, Iraqis and Pakistanis, as well as Hizbullah fighters from Lebanon. Of an estimated 3 million Afghans in Iran, only 1/3 are legal migrants. For taking up the cause of "defending" Shiite shrines in Syria, they receive upwards of $700 per month and promises of Iranian citizenship, schooling for their children, and jobs - if they survive the frontline. Interviews of Afghans captured by Syrian rebels depict hapless men serving as cannon fodder, lost in a foreign war and not speaking Arabic.