(The Economist) – One of the worst dilemmas soldiers face is what to do when they confront armed children. International law and most military codes treat underage combatants mainly as innocent victims. They offer guidance on their legal rights and on how to interrogate and demobilise them. They have little to say about a soul-destroying question, […]
(Physicians for Human Rights) – Syrian government officials and opposition forces reached a deal this week to evacuate residents from four besieged towns: Foah and Kafraya, encircled by opposition fighters, and Madaya and Zabadani, surrounded by Syrian government forces and their allies. Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) has long documented the devastating health effects of sieges […]
(Kingdom of Belgium Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation) – Today is the second and last day of the Second Safe Schools Conference which is taking place in the Argentinian capital, Buenos Aires. The Safe Schools Declaration is a political engagement seeking to offer students, pupils and education personnel a better protection during an armed conflict. […]
(UNICEF) – UNICEF welcomes the Italian Parliament for passing an historic law to boost support and protection for the record number of foreign unaccompanied and separated children who arrived in Italy – nearly 26,000 in 2016. With nearly 2,000 foreign children arriving on the Mediterranean in the first two months of 2017, the upward trend in […]
(CAJ News) – South Sudanese children clad in military and police uniforms have been spotted manning checkpoints, guarding military facilities and carrying heavy weapons throughout the country as the crisis deteriorates. In the wake of these continued violations against minors, United Nations envoys have proposed sanctions on perpetrators of the conflict. As the situation deteriorates, it […]
(Human Rights Watch) – The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, MONUSCO, confirmed on March 28, 2017, that the bodies of Zaida Catalán, a Swede, and Michael Sharp, an American, were found by UN peacekeepers near Bunkonde in Kasai Central province on March 27. The two members of the UN Group of Experts […]
(ReliefWeb) – Education Above All (EAA) Foundation, through its legal advocacy programme, Protect Education in Insecurity and Conflict (PEIC), and its partners at the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA), are calling upon countries across the world to sign the Safe Schools Declaration (Declaration), and for those who have already signed up to fully implement […]
(Al Jazeera) – Two former rebels in Myanmar have been reunited in their homeland for the first time since giving up their armed struggle 16 years ago. The twins were part of the so-called “God’s Army” as child soldiers, and grew up to lead a violent struggle against Myanmar’s military. Link
(UNICEF) – More than a month after famine was declared in South Sudan, time is running out for more than a million children as drought and armed conflict devastate lives in northeast Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen, UNICEF said today. “Children can’t wait for yet another famine declaration before we take action,” said Manuel Fontaine, […]
(Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack) – The Second International Conference on Safe Schools opening in Buenos Aires today will contribute to better safeguarding education in war-zones, said the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA). The two-day conference, hosted by Argentina’s Ministries of Defense and Foreign Affairs, brings together state, international organization, and […]