NZ firefighter will be sent to Turkey and Jordan to help train Syrian White Helmets

A New Zealand Urban Search and Rescue member prepares for a mission in Nepal in 2015. Photo / File

A New Zealand firefighter will be sent to Turkey and Jordan as a short-term training adviser for civil defence volunteers working in Syria known as the White Helmets.

New Zealand will contribute about $100,000 to the training project, bringing New Zealand aid to those affected by violence in Syria and Iraq to over $25 million.

The firefighter, who has not been selected yet, will be away for about four months.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne said New Zealand wanted to share its globally recognised expertise in urban search and rescue with the White Helmets, "and show our support for a volunteer organisation which is doing remarkable work in badly damaged cities like Aleppo".