Turkey-led forces reportedly recruit children in north Syria

PanARMENIAN.Net - Opposition sources report that Turkish-led militant groups in northern Syria have recruited many non-adult males to fight Ankara’s battles, Al-Masdar News.

According to opposition sources, the Turkey-backed Syrian rebel coalition known as ‘Euphrates Shield’ has tens of child soldiers, most around 15-16 years old, within its ranks.

Some pictures were released by opposition sources to provide visual evidence of the claims being made.

The Euphrates Shield operations room was formed up from various rebel groups linked to the Free Syrian Army and Ahrar al-Sham (Syrian Muslim Brotherhood franchise) as part of a Turkish Army-led military incursion into northern Syria aimed at expelling ISIS from a key section of Turkish border.

Since the operation against the Islamic State group was terminated after the battle of Al-Bab , Euphrates Shield forces have so far relegated themselves to conducing occasional raids against positions of the Syrian Arab Army to their south and those of US-backed militias to their east and west.