500 Iraqi minors in US detention

[TriWooOx]

Around 500 minors are currently detained by the US army, as well as nearly a dozen juveniles in Afghanistan, a new report reveals.

"Since 2002, the United States has held approximately 2,500 individuals under the age of 18 at the time of their capture ... in Guantanamo Bay, in Iraq, and in Afghanistan," said a US government report for the UN children's agency, made public by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

"As of April 2008, US forces held approximately 500 juveniles" in Iraq, where "all detainees, regardless of age, are held by US forces as imperative threats to security at the request of the sovereign Iraqi government and pursuant to a UN Security Council Resolution," the report said.

Pentagon spokesman Jeffrey Gordon confirmed the report was true but gave no further comment, AFP reported.

The number of minors in US detention in Iraq witnessed its peak in 2007 when as high as 800 Iraqi minors where under the US army arrest.

In addition, around 10 minors are currently held in US custody in Afghanistan's Bagram prison, and are considered" enemy combatants."

The Director of the ACLU Human Rights Program, Jamil Dakwar, said it was "shocking to know that the US is holding hundreds of juveniles in Iraq and Afghanistan, and even more disturbing that there is no comprehensive policy in place that will protect their rights as children."  

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=55 ... =351020201