KUNDUZ CITY (SW): Provincial security authorities in Kunduz province have said there are some madrasas (religious schools) in the province that brainwash children for terrorist attacks.
Hijratullah Akbari, spokesman for provincial police headquarters, told Salam Watandar their findings indicate at least 40 percent of Taliban fighters in the province are minors who are brainwashed and trained for insurgency in Char Dara district. He noted a former madrasa teacher named Sher is spearheading the military training of children.
According to the provincial security authorities, 2 children were recently rescued while they were planting explosives. The minors later confessed they were trained in the infamous madrasa of Sher. In another incident, a minor was killed when a landmine he was planting exploded.
Child soldiers are children under the age of 18 who are recruited by a state or non-state armed group and used as fighters, cooks, suicide bombers, human shields, messengers or spies. Recruiting and using children as soldiers is prohibited under international laws and is defined as a war crime by the International Criminal Court.
The two children, who were rescued and arrested while planting explosives, later run away from the police custody. Salam Watandar has been informed by the officials that each of the two children were paid 2 thousand afghanis for planting landmines. If the planted explosives failed to hit the target, the children were paid only 5 hundred afghanis.
A resident of Kunduz who is aware about the issue, told Salam Watandar on condition of anonymity the children who run away from the security authorities keep ties with the Taliban, and they collect information for the Taliban from the city.
Ali Khel, head of Children Protection Action Network (CPAN), informed at least 100 children are rescued from committing suicide attacks in a year. He added these children aged between 12 to 18 years. These children are now under the supervision of CPAN.
The children who are either arrested or rescued from committing insurgent attack are held in child protection centers where they are supervised for correction. Head of the CPAN added at least 30 children who run away from correction centers during the fall of Kunduz, are now in danger.
Taj Mohammad, head of provincial directorate of justice, confirmed 8 girls and 30 boys escaped from child correction facilities when Kunduz fell in the hands of the Taliban.
Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) has expressed grim concerns over the use of children in the insurgency by the Taliban. Officials at the provincial AIHRC office in Kunduz have said they do not have exact statistics in this regard. The Human Rights Watch (HRW) had previously noted that the Taliban have made more efforts to recruit children and youth from madrasas. Latest HRW report indicates that in 2015, the Taliban recruited 100 children for insurgent activities.
Meanwhile, ZabiullahMujahid, Taliban spokesperson, have rejected all the allegations. In conversation with Salam Watandar, he said there are no children in their ranks. “Reports about the use of children in our struggle is a ‘government propaganda’, according to the Taliban military code of conduct, children are not allowed in the war”, added Mujahid.
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