Alarm over growing use of child soldiers

‘We are going to kill the kafir over there.’

With these chilling words, a boy who was just a baby when the Syrian War started took its centre stage. He appeared in a video released by Daesh (so-called ‘Islamic State’) on Sunday, dressed in camouflage gear and threatening non-believers in the UK with death. His grandfather later identified him as Isa Dare, the son of a Nigerian-British woman who went to Syria in 2012.

Children have previously appeared in Daesh propaganda – Isa himself was seen brandishing an AK-47 in a photo posted online in 2014. But never before has the group given a child such a prominent role. The video sends out a harrowing message: even if the current crop of jihadists is eliminated, a new generation is waiting to take over.

This is a reminder that Daesh is more than a mere terrorist group. It boasts a complex recruitment programme, which targets young and old alike. When it captures new territory, it holds public meetings to lure local kids, often promising sweets and toys. In time, they are invited to watch executions, wield weapons, and eventually kill people themselves.

Training is not random, but systematic. The schools in Daesh held territory follow its curriculum, teaching pupils the importance of establishing a caliphate and waging jihad against non-believers. The group runs large military camps for its young members (who are known as ‘Cubs’). In this way, children are indoctrinated and groomed to become fighters or wives.

Daesh’s use of children may be especially sophisticated, but it is not unique. There are an estimated 300,000 child soldiers in the world today; their average age is 14, and 40% of them are girls. Their number is increasing.

Many of the culprits are military groups like Daesh, but state armies such as Nigeria’s and South Sudan’s have also recruited underage fighters. Of these young lives, those not lost in combat are tragically damaged.

A hopeless case?

Contrary to popular belief, a large proportion of child soldiers volunteer, or are volunteered by their family. This may be because the life of a child soldier appears preferable to the life they have (although they often do not realise what they are volunteering for). Some believe the most effective action is to punish the parents who let their children go.

On the other hand, groups like Amnesty International want to enforce the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which says that ‘all children have the right to special protection in time of conflict and should not take a direct part in hostilities’. And there are many projects across the world providing education and counselling to help ex-child soldiers return to civilian life.