Syria Children Killed, Forced to Fight In Record Numbers: UNICEF

[TomSea]

News
Mar 13 2017, 9:27 am ET
Syria Children Killed, Forced to Fight In Record Numbers: UNICEF

by Mark Hanrahan

The suffering of Syria's children reached grim milestones in 2016, with record numbers being killed, maimed and forced into fighting — including acting as suicide bombers and executioners — in the country's civil war, according to UNICEF.

At least 652 children were killed in the conflict last year — a 20 percent increase from 2015, the charity said in a report released Monday.

Volunteers rescue a boy from rubble following a barrel bomb attack on the Syrian city of Aleppo on Nov. 24, 2016. Ameer Alhalbi / AFP - Getty Images

It also found that 851 children had been recruited to fight in the war, more than double the number in 2015.

UNICEF said kids were being forced into combat roles, including acting as prison guards and even executioners or suicide bombers.

Continued: http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/syria-children-killed-forced-fight-record-numbers-unicef-n732601