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Human Rights Watch has expressed concern that entities affiliated with the de facto authorities in eastern Syria are continuing to recruit children.
On October 2, 2024, the organization voiced its concerns about the ongoing “forced” recruitment of children (boys and girls as young as 12) by the Revolutionary Youth Movement, who are then sent to join armed groups.
Human Rights Watch described the recruitment of children by the Revolutionary Youth in eastern Syria as an “uprooting” of these children from their schools and families, noting that families are being prevented from contacting their children, and all “persistent” attempts by parents to reach them have been blocked.
The organization stated that the Revolutionary Youth’s actions amount to open ideological indoctrination of children on behalf of armed groups, without any accountability, despite commitments by local authorities to put an end to such practices.
Adam Coogle, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Human Rights Watch, called on the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to take immediate and decisive action to ensure that all groups operating under their control adhere to strict policies against child recruitment and protect children from exploitation.
The organization noted that the Revolutionary Youth Movement is not itself an armed group, but is assumed to be heavily involved in the political and military structures of the “Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria” and its military wing (i.e., the SDF).
The primary role of the Revolutionary Youth is believed to be the ideological indoctrination of children. However, independent Syrian human rights organizations have documented cases in which the movement transferred children, particularly girls, to armed groups affiliated with the SDF, despite the latter’s pledge to end child recruitment.
The UN Secretary-General’s most recent annual report accused all parties to the Syrian conflict of recruiting children, with 231 verified cases attributed to the SDF and its affiliated groups in 2023.
Human Rights Watch sent a letter to the SDF and the Autonomous Administration on August 26, requesting information on the Revolutionary Youth’s role in recruiting children, as well as the steps authorities have taken to address the issue, but they have not responded. The organization also sent a letter to the U.S. Departments of State and Defense on September 9, asking about the same issue.
Human Rights Watch called on the SDF and its affiliated groups to immediately halt all child recruitment activities by armed groups in their alliance and ensure that no affiliated or external entities engage in recruitment within the areas under their control.
The organization stressed the need to return all children under the age of 18 to their families safely and to provide them with medical and psychological support. Additionally, it urged the SDF to expand the child protection offices it has established to help end child recruitment, ensuring that these offices have sufficient resources, staff, and authority to conduct investigations, and to take seriously all reports of missing children.
Child recruitment remains a pressing concern for parents in Syria, particularly with the increasing cases of abduction and recruitment by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), who send these children to frontlines in various areas of Syria and Iraq.
Although the SDF was one of the first groups to acknowledge child recruitment within its ranks and sign agreements to stop this practice, it has not adhered to these commitments. The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, based in Geneva, has criticized the United Nations for its slow action in ensuring that the SDF implements the signed action plan, which provides full protection to children from participating in combat.
Despite international pressure on the SDF and other groups involved in child recruitment, they continue to engage in this practice, which is in “flagrant violation” of human rights conventions and international laws that prohibit the recruitment of children, especially in armed conflicts.
The “Same Justice Organization” has called for serious and effective investigations into the illegal recruitment of children in areas controlled by the SDF and for all those involved to be held accountable.
The organisation also called on the United States to take appropriate measures to enforce humanitarian principles, particularly the “prevention of child recruitment” within armed groups it supports.
