Syrian children are increasingly being conscripted into combat roles and being killed on the battlefield, according to the regional director of Unicef in the Middle East.
Peter Salama said several hundred children were conscripted last year, and as many as 400 had been killed, some in combat.
Speaking before a conference on the Syrian humanitarian crisis to be held in London in early February, he said Unicef had been able to identify 47 specific attacks on schools last year, and more than 4,000 assaults of some kind on school property since the Syrian crisis started nearly five years ago.
“We are seeing children killed and maimed in schools and playgrounds by all parties to the conflict,” he said on Tuesday, and suggested the findings were probably just the tip of the iceberg.
“In the past, children over 16 have been involved in the military in non-combat roles, but we are seeing a very different pattern today,” Salama said. “It is one of the most insidious trends in Syria.
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