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Two-thirds of states confirm that enrollment of soldiers under the age of 18 should be banned to prohibit forced child soldiers, as well as 16- and 17-year-old armed force volunteers.

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In the last 15 years the use of child, soldiers has spread to almost every region of the world and every armed conflict.

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"In some conflicts, commanders supply child soldiers with marijuana and opiates to make them "brave" and lessen their fear of combat. Furthermore, commanders may initiate child recruits by forcing them to witness or commit abuses and killings in order to desensitize them to violence" isaac santos 

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"In some conflicts, commanders supply child soldiers with marijuana and opiates to make them "brave" and lessen their fear of combat. Furthermore, commanders may initiate child recruits by forcing them to witness or commit abuses and killings in order to desensitize them to violence" isaac santos 

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Children are sometimes forced to commit atrocities against their own family or neighbors. Such practices help ensure that the child is "stigmatized" and unable to return to his or her home community.

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Child soldiers are children that the put in the military or an occupation and they are trained to fight and kill

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"Two-thirds of states confirm that enrollment of soldiers under the age of 18 should be banned to prohibit forced child soldiers, as well as 16- and 17-year-old armed force volunteers"

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Fueling Young People to Change the World | DoSomething.org

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Child soldiers are any children under the age of 18 who are recruited by the state or non state armed group and used as firefighters, cooks suicide bombers, human shields, messengers, spies, or for sexual purposes.

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"In the last 15 years, the use of child soldiers has spread to almost every region of the world and every armed conflict. Though an exact number is impossible to define, thousands of child soldiers are illegally serving in armed conflict around the world."(Dosomething.org)

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"Girl soldiers are often used as “wives” and are sexually abused. Human Rights Watch has reported girl soldiers being impregnated by their commanders and having to fight with their child strapped to their backs."

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Although improvements have been made to end the use of child soldiers, it is believed that close to 300,000 child soldiers are still being recruited and forced into war across the world today. Child soldiers are children under the age of 18, some even as young as seven years of age, who are used for any purpose in a military or armed group. Child soldiers can act as cooks, messengers, informants, soldiers, suicide bombers or even sex slaves.

Why do people use child soldiers? Armed forces can manipulate children easily, they do not eat very much food, and they do not have to be paid. Soldiers take advantage of this and use children as pawns in their dangerous battles.

10 Child Soldier Facts

1. Forty percent of the world's armed forces use child soldiers.

2. Though child soldiers are often associated with African conflicts, they have been used throughout history in armies all over the world.

3. Children who are poor or have little access to education have a higher chance of being forcibly recruited.

4. Some children choose to enter the military to escape poverty or because they believe they will be offered safety and security by doing so.

5. Sometimes, as part of their recruitment, child soldiers are forced to kill family members or neighbors to desensitize them and make it so the children cannot go back to their homes and communities.

6. Children are often used to man checkpoints when there is no active combat taking place. The soldiers will stand several meters back so if anyone starts to fire a weapon, the child soldiers will be the first ones to get hit.

7. Girl soldiers are often used as "wives" and are sexually abused. Human Rights Watch has reported girl soldiers being impregnated by their commanders and having to fight with their child strapped to their backs.

8. Child soldiers are known to be fighting in at least 14 countries, including Afghanistan, India, Iraq and Thailand.

9. If child soldiers are released, they often lack basic survival skills because they were supplied food and shelter in battle. This makes it difficult for them to survive if and when they become free.

10. When child soldiers are released, many are shunned and given little if any support to reintegrate into their communities. If there is a lack of rehabilitation support, children are frequently recruited back into the military.

These are only a few of the most disturbing facts about child soldiers. Children from all around the world are ripped from their youth and thrown into a merciless world of battle. In order to help these children return to a normal life, UNICEF has established rehabilitation centers in current and former conflict areas. The support these centers provide is crucial to healing former child soldiers and reintegrating them into their communities. This work combined with international pressure to end the practice can make these facts about child soldiers part of the past instead of the present.
- McCall Robison

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10 Shocking Facts About Child Soldiers | The Borgen Project

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Although improvements have been made to end the use of child soldiers, it is believed that close to 300,000 child soldiers are still being recruited and forced into war across the world today. Child soldiers are children under the age of 18, some even as young as seven years of age, who are used for any purpose in a military or armed group.

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Any girl or boy below the age of 18 who is recruited or used by an armed force or armed group, in any capacity.
Children become soldiers in different ways. Some are forcibly recruited. They may be abducted, threatened or coerced into joining, while others are enticed with money, drugs or in other ways.

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Thousands of children are serving as soldiers in armed conflicts around the world. These boys and girls, some as young as 8 years old, serve in government forces and armed opposition groups. (Human Rights Waters-hrw.org)

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- Child soldiers are given a mixture of cane juice and gunpowder that helps makes them high and is supposed to give them courage to go and fight at the front.

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"The number of children used in armed conflicts around the world has doubled since 2012 with at least 30,000 cases verified during this period These are the estimates published by the international NGO children soldiers on the occasion of the international day against the use of child soldiers that It is celebrated on February 12" (UN, child soldiers Internacional, www.epdata.es)
-arelys