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Amnesty: Palestinian Armed Groups Must Not Use Children

(Amnesty International) Amnesty International reiterates its calls to Palestinian armed groups to put an immediate end to the use of children in armed activities. "Palestinian armed groups must not use children under any circumstances to carry out armed attacks or to transport weapons or other material," Amnesty International said. On 22 May 2005, a 15-year-old Palestinian child carrying explosives was arrested by the Israeli army at the Hawara military checkpoint, at the entrance to the West Bank town of Nablus. Several Palestinian armed groups, including the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, an offshoot of the ruling Fatah party, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), have used children to transport explosives and munitions, thereby endangering their lives. In some cases these groups have sent children to carry out suicide attacks. Palestinian armed groups have repeatedly shown total disregard for the most fundamental human rights, notably the right to life, by deliberately targeting Israeli civilians and by using Palestinian children in armed attacks.
2005-05-25 00:00:00
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