Shiite Houthi rebels, who control part of Yemen, have vowed to stop recruiting children as part of an “action plan” they have signed with the United Nations, as a ceasefire has been declared in the war-torn country.
The Iranian-backed Houthis have been at war for more than seven years with government forces backed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
NGOs accuse Shiite rebels of recruiting children in a war raging in one of the world’s poorest countries.
“The Houthis have signed an action plan with the UN to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict,” the UN said in a statement on Monday.
The agreement also aims to prevent “the killing and mutilation of children, attacks on schools and hospitals and other serious violations,” the statement added.
According to the UN, the action plan was signed at the start of the ceasefire, which took effect on April 2, the first day of the holy month of Ramadan.
“This new Houthi commitment is a positive and encouraging step,” said Virginia Gamba, a spokeswoman for the UN chief on child protection in war-torn countries.
“The action plan must be fully implemented and result in concrete actions to improve child protection in Yemen,” he said.
The Houthis control the northwestern part of Yemen as well as the capital Sanaa, which they occupied in 2014.
Since 2015, when a military coalition under Saudi Arabia intervened in the country in support of government forces, the UN estimates that more than 10,200 children have been killed or maimed. In addition, nearly 3,500 others have been recruited or used since the beginning of the war.
The prolonged conflict has displaced millions of people to Yemen, with hundreds estimated at dead. A large part of the country’s population, including children, suffers from acute hunger and is threatened by famine.
Source: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ
Source: Capital
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