US EditionIran recruits children as young as 12 for military support roles: Report
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps lowered the recruitment age to 12 amid ongoing war, enlisting children for patrols and checkpoints in Tehran, officials said.
- On Thursday, Iranian officials announced the minimum age for war-related support roles has been lowered to 12. The initiative, dubbed 'For Iran,' recruits youth to assist the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Basij militia with checkpoints and patrols.
- Tehran authorities launched the recruitment drive amid ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel. Officials claimed teenagers requested participation, though reports suggest a shortage of willing adult volunteers for frontline militia duties.
- Throughout Tehran, residents reported armed youths manning checkpoints with Uzis or Kalashnikovs. Untrained teenagers seal off areas just 100 meters away after missile strikes, shouting orders at civilians and firing warning shots into the air.
- Recruiting children for military activities violates commitments under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Critics likened the strategy to Berlin's final defense, calling it despicable and a sign Iran is running low on willing adult fighters.
- The recruitment push follows the death of IRGC Navy Commander Alireza Tangsiri and mounting military losses. CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper reported 92 percent of the Iranian navy's large ships have been destroyed and face 'irreversible decline.
43 Articles
43 Articles
Iran Recruits Children as Young as 12 for Tehran Checkpoints During War
Iran has opened a new recruitment drive allowing children as young as 12 to sign up as “combatants defending the homeland,” according to RFE/RL on March 27. The program was announced by Rahim Nadali, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps deputy director for culture in Tehran, and reported by multiple Iranian media outlets. We bring you stories from the ground. Your support keeps our team in the field. DONATE NOW “We launched a plan that we cal…
Iran's IRGC Looks To Recruit Child 'Combatants' As Young As 12
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said that children as young as 12 can participate in defense-support roles. Amid ongoing US-Israeli strikes, the IRGC announced the launch of a broad campaign to mobilize public assistance in roles like security patrols and working at checkpoints.
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