Agency: seized documents give insight into Islamic State’s payroll

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Islamic State members were paid their salaries based on the number of their dependents, with top leaders receiving a minimum of US$500, according to documents seized by police forces in Mosul.

Documents viewed and published by Russian agency Sputnik revealed that payments varied based on the number of wives and children a fighter retained, but did not surpass US$300. Unmarried members received a fixed amount of US$70, of which US$40 were paid as a meal allowance, which was also fixed even for married fighters.

One member, nicknamed Abu Jana, 26, a father of three, received US$184, according to a part viewed by the agency. Another one, nicknamed “Abu Nasser” received a higher amount of US$256 for having six children and one wife.

Higher ranking “emirs”, meanwhile, were offered “special” meals, and had exclusive bounty sharing and selling rights when it came to belongings looted from refugees houses, the documents reveal.

Throughout the eight-month campaign against IS in Mosul, which ended with a declaration of final victory last Monday. Iraqi forces have occasionally run into archives that provided a closer look into the Islamic State’s management structure. IS members have also burned many of their archives across their strongholds in Iraq. Occasional reports spoke of periods when the group suffered financial hardships that delayed payments for fighters.