Santo Domingo.- A total of 442 soldiers from the Dominican Republic who fought in the Iraq war between 2003 and 2004 began this Thursday to collect the promised per diem, after almost 20 years of claims to collect the money owed.
The group, which includes active and passive members of the Armed Forces, will jointly receive 68 million pesos (about 1.2 million dollars), according to the Ministry of Defense.
The soldiers, displaced during the government of Hipólito Mejía (2000-2004), carried out patrols, surveillance and intelligence tasks in the Arab country from the base of operations in the city of Diwaniya between 2003 and 2004.
For years, the military have been demanding payment of the promised money, alleging that they are in “deplorable conditions” and have staged various protests, the last one outside the home of former President Mejía last September.
On previous occasions, soldiers have denounced that each one was promised a house upon returning from Iraq, houses that were built and given to other people.
