Around 63 million dollars has been allocated in the 2004 defense budget to providing bonuses ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 dollars, said army spokesman Kristen Carle.

The size of the bonus runs according to speciality, rank and length of extension.

The offer comes as the army is embarking on a massive and complex rotation of its forces in Iraq, with some 125,000 US troops due in the coming months to be deployed out of the region and replaced by others.

"What we try to do is to take the full mix of incentives for the men and women in the service and see that we are able to continue to attract and retain the number of skill sets we need," said Carle.

The Army announced Monday it would extend the tours of thousands of soldiers in Iraq who were due to end their service or retire before their units' return home.

Some 7,000 soldiers currently in Iraq are due either to end their service or retire before their unit is scheduled to redeploy.

A similar order is already in effect for members of army reserve units and for active duty soldiers scheduled to deploy to Iraq or Afghanistan, an army spokesman said.

Soldiers affected by the order tended to be in leadership positions because of their level of experience, said Major Steve Stover.

Members of Congress were briefed on the plan Monday but commanders have yet to be formally notified of the decision, he said, adding that it would be implemented immediately.

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