Your task is to predict the verdict of a claim based on the provided question-answer pair evidence. The possible labels are: 'Supported', 'Refuted', 'Not Enough Evidence', 'Conflicting Evidence/Cherrypicking'. Justify your answer using the provided evidence and select the correct label.

Claim: Russian Mercenaries in Syria are Private Contractors and They Are Not Engaged in Combat

Q1: Have Russian mercenaries been engaged in combat in Syria?
A1: Yes, because The Russian mercenaries fighting in Syria say they are not in the country for the money or to help Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Early last month, an unknown number of Russian mercenaries -- some reports say a dozen, others as many as 200 -- were killed by U.S. air strikes during fighting in Syria. The men were hired by a private military contracting firm called ChVK Vagner, which has been sending Russians to fight in Syria since 2015.

Q2: Is ChVK Vagner sponsored by Russia?
A2: Mark Galeotti, a researcher with the Institute of International Relations in Prague, has written extensively on the topic of Wagner and Russia’s use of mercenaries as a potentially deniable asset. According to him, Wagner cannot be considered a legitimate private military company.

“I tend to call Wagner a pseudo-mercenary outfit because it is somewhere in between,” Galeotti told Polygraph.info. “Given that it seems largely bankrolled through Evro Polis [a company owned by Prigozhin], and it has a contract with the Syrian government worth 25% of the output of any gas and oil fields it recovers, there is clearly some truly mercenary aspect, even if much of the time it is working for the Russian command cell in Damascus.”

But while he acknowledges a possible change in Wagner’s ownership, Galeotti agreed that the organization was undoubtedly tied to the Russian state, at least in the beginning: “I don't think there is any question they were originally a state-sponsored op, is there?”

And given the fact that wounded fighters still appear to be receiving treatment at Russian military hospitals, possibly arriving on Russian military transport aircraft, it appears that Russian authorities know far more about Wagner and its activities than they have so far admitted in public.

Q3: Have any Russian mercenaries received state medals of the type usually awarded to military personnel?
A3: Yes, because According to Fontanka, Troshev (Wagners executive director) was awarded the Hero of Russia honor for assisting in the capture of Palmyra. Bogatov also reportedly won this title. Kuznetsov and Uktin have reportedly won the Order of Courage four times.
user
justification: Evidence provided that Russian mercenaries are strongly linked to Russian state and that they are engaged in combat in Syria - this counters both claims.

verdict: 'Refuted'
assistant