Use of Children in Armed Conflict in Southwest Asia and Its Criminalization in the Legal Systems of Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq in Comparison with International Documents

One of the most important harms of armed conflict, especially in the Southwest Asia region, is the recruitment of children into groups and the armed forces and their use in conflicts which is clearly shown by the actions of groups such as ISIS, the Taliban and the Saudi-led coalition of aggression in Yemen. Such a treatment of children constitutes a violation of the rights recognized for them in human rights and humanitarian law instruments, and the International Criminal Law has reaffirmed the necessity to punish the perpetrators. International instruments have required governments to criminalize the recruitment and use of children for armed conflict in order to guarantee their rights. Therefore, in the present study, the position of three legal systems in the region of Southwest Asia i.e. Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq in dealing with this issue has been studied through a descriptive-analytical method. The findings of the research indicate that these countries, inspired by international regulations and especially the statute of the International Criminal Court, have criminalized this field. Recruitment of children and the recruitment and use of children in armed conflicts are describe as a crime in Syrian law and laws of Afghanistan and Iraq respectively which has been identified as a war crime in Afghanistan and Iraq. Criminal regulations of Afghanistan and Syria have imposed penalties such as imprisonment and fines for this crime, but in Iraq so far no specific punishment has been determined in this regard, and contrary to the principle of legality of crime and punishment, the decision in this case is left to the judiciary.