U.S. Soldiers inventory of M16 rifles near Erbil, Iraq, Feb. 22, 2016. Coalition partners donated the guns to local forces to help counter ISIS. (Photos: Spc. Jessica Hurst/U.S. Army)
U.S. troops in Iraq recently handed over a few surplus M16 rifles to allied forces for them to use in the fight against ISIS as part of some $715 million worth of military aid earmarked this year for the region.
As reported by the Pentagon, as part of the Coalition partnership, U.S. Army Soldiers arranged for the donation of 1,200 M16 rifles to the Peshmerga Kurdish militia on February 22 as part of the Iraq Train and Equip Fund (ITEF).
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Kenneth Rudd, assigned to 77th Sustainment Brigade, and Spc. Daniel Mateo, with the 17th Sustainment Brigade, read the serial numbers of M16 rifles during a weapons inventory near Erbil, Iraq, Feb. 22, 2016.
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Kelvin Riddle, assigned to the 7th Engineer Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, conducts an inventory of an M16 rifle’s serial number during a weapons inventory near Erbil, Iraq, Feb. 22, 2016
U.S. Army Spc. Daniel Mateo, assigned to 17th Sustainment Brigade, reads the serial number for an M16 rifle during a weapons inventory near Erbil, Iraq, Feb. 22, 2016
As noted by the Department of Defense Comptroller, the FY2016 budget for ITEF includes transferring some $715 million worth of military hardware the Government of Iraq, Peshmerga and tribal security forces, including:
38,000 M4 Rifles valued at $647 apiece
1,560 M240 machine guns valued at $12,000 apiece
1,296 M249 SAWs at $3,830 each
1,920 M9 Berettas at $636
584 mortars
1,136 M3 Carl Gustav 84mm recoilless rifles
176 Sniper rifles
232 M2 .50 caliber machine guns
40,000 sets of body armor and helmets
All to be used to fight ISIS.
Or something like that.
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