(OSRSG-CAAC) – A fifth dreadful year of conflict is ending for the children of Syria. Another year spent worrying about their safety, or fleeing unbearable violence. Another year during which boys and girls have looked up with anguish to see if a bomb was about to fall from the sky, or if they would be able to hide from the next attack in their neighborhood. Again in the past year, hundreds of children have died and many more were injured. ISIL continued its massive recruitment and use of children, and forced them to commit gruesome acts of violence, including using boys as executioners. Other armed groups also continued to recruit and use children, in some cases targeting them at a younger age. The recruitment and use of children robs them of their rights, and also puts them at greater risk: in the past year, there has been an increase of verified cases of children killed and maimed following their association with armed groups.
