child soldiers

Child soldiers are persons under the age of 18 who are recruited or used by armed forces or armed groups in any capacity. The term covers not only children who take direct part in hostilities, but also children used as cooks, porters, scouts, messengers or for sexual purposes. The definition follows that of the UN Office for Children and Armed Conflict and is widely applied in international law.

International humanitarian law sets specific age limits for the protection of children in armed conflict. Additional Protocols I and II to the Geneva Conventions prohibit the recruitment and participation of children under 15 in hostilities. Article 38 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child obliges states to ensure that children under 15 do not take a direct part in hostilities, while the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict raises this standard to 18 for direct participation.

Recruiting or using child soldiers under the age of 15 constitutes a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. This applies both in international armed conflicts and in non-international armed conflicts, see Rome Statute articles 8(2)(b)(xxvi) and 8(2)(e)(vii). The war crime covers both armed forces attached to states and armed groups outside state control.

The legal protection of children in armed conflict rests on the recognition of children's particular vulnerability and developmental needs. Even where children join armed groups voluntarily, they are regarded as victims rather than perpetrators, since their age limits their capacity to give informed consent. International law therefore places a clear responsibility on armed actors not to exploit children in situations of war.