PKK/YPG abducts children in Syria for armed recruitment

The terrorist organisation PKK/YPG has kidnapped three children from Raqqa province and Manbij district of Aleppo in Syria for recruitment, an official said.

Redor al-Ahmad, spokesperson for the opposition group Independent Kurdish Association, told Anadolu that a 13-year-old from Manbij, and a 14-year-old and 15-year-old from Raqqa were kidnapped by the terrorists.

Ahmad said the terrorists prevent the kidnapped children from contacting their families and are taken to so-called training camps for armed training.

Since the beginning of the year, he added, the terrorist organisation has kidnapped more than 35 children from areas it occupies in Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and Al Hasakah provinces to recruit them into its armed forces.

PKK/YPG forcibly recruited 231 children in Syria in 2023

The UN's Children and Armed Conflict Report 2023 revealed that the PKK/YPG terror group and its affiliated structures forcibly recruited 231 children into their armed forces.

The report said the terror organisation and other affiliated structures also killed or maimed eight children in 2023, and converted 31 schools and hospitals for their armed activities.

In his assessment of the report, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres highlighted the urgent situation in Syria, noting the distressing frequency of serious offenses against children.

He stressed the importance of following international laws, freeing all detained children without delay, stopping assaults on educational and medical facilities, and ensuring these buildings are not used for military activities.