TEL ABYAD, Syria

The YPG/PKK terror group in Syria is being accused by local sources of having kidnapped three children who were then recruited into its armed forces.

Two 14-year-olds, known as M.A.H. and A.F, were abducted on Tuesday from Manbij district of Syria’s Aleppo province, Redor al-Ahmed, spokesperson for the opposition group, "Independent Kurdish Order," told Anadolu.

He said the terror group on Tuesday also kidnapped a 15-year-old Z.S. from Sheikh Maqsood district of Aleppo.

The YPG/PKK abducts or detains young people and children away from their families and trains them in training camps to become fighters, which violates the agreement with the UN.

The YPG/PKK recruited more than 1,200 children in 2022, according to a UN report.

"I am extremely concerned about the use of children as soldiers by the PKK," said UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in June.

"I implore them to end the use of children as soldiers and to release all children in their ranks," he added.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

The YPG is its Syrian offshoot.

*Writing by Merve Berker