![]() ![]() ![]() With regard to the YPG, OPAC is clear: As long as one does not recognize the so-called Democratic Federation of Northern Syria as a state-like entity, the YPG, as its military arm, is barred from recruiting minors. This double standard is not surprising given that OPAC is the product of negotiations between nation states, which naturally reject the existence of non-state armed groups in general. Under the agreement, national armed forces are allowed to recruit persons who have attained the age of 15 as long as they do not take part directly in hostilities.īut what about non-state armed groups like the YPG? According to OPAC, such groups are not allowed to recruit persons under the age of 18. Adopted in 2000, OPAC has emerged as a standard endorsed by most UN member states. When it comes to the use of child soldiers, there is one treaty that the YPG’s policy is usually measured against: The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict ( OPAC). According to data collected by Geneva Call, the YPG has made credible progress in implementing the agreement. ![]() The YPG has endorsed an agreement with Geneva Call, an NGO pushing armed non-state actors to adhere to international humanitarian norms and to keep minors away from combat. Much has changed since the accusations were first aired in 2014. However, such accusations must be put into context with regards to what international law says and the actual practices on the ground. ![]() Four years later, in late 2018, HRW's findings were supported by a UN report noting that the YPG’s use of boys and girls in combat roles increased sharply in 2017 and early 2018. There is no doubt that minors are fighting in the ranks of the People’s Protection Units (YPG), a Syrian Kurdish militia that controls most of the country’s northeast, but just how widespread is this phenomenon?Īfter Human Rights Watch (HRW) condemned cases of underage boys and girls fighting in the ranks of the YPG in 2014, headlines suggesting a systematic use of child soldiers made the rounds. Accusing a faction of exploiting this particularly vulnerable group is an effective way of demonizing both political and military opponents. The use of child soldiers is a grave human rights violation. ![]()
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