Afghanistan's Current Conflict
After the Soviet forces left Afghanistan, the pro-communist government slowly began to break down. A civil war ensued between the pro-communist government and guerrilla warfare rebel groups. In 1994 alone, over 10,000 people died in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. By the use of ethnic and political sympathy, the Taliban officially took over the country in 1996. During the savage seven-year ruling of the Taliban over the fearing civilians of Afghanistan, all forms of freedom and human rights were violated and restricted. Women and girls were forbidden from schools, universities, or jobs. Following the September 11th attacks, United States forces overpowered and overthrew the Taliban in Afghanistan. As the country continues to rebuild and connect the torn sectors, instability and tension is slowly starting to grow and major reports are starting to note the increased presence of the Taliban throughout Afghanistan.
Afghanistan's Use of Child Soldiers
Even though there have been no reports of child soldiers serving in government forces, the Taliban continues to employ their use throughout the country. Child soldiers are usually employed as land mine detectors because the entire country seems to be a sitting land mine waiting to explode. The increase of Taliban’s presence in Afghanistan has also been met with an increase of child soldiers, as Taliban uses schools and recruiting grounds in order to indoctrinate the children with the views of the Jihad. Only older boys who are close to the commander receive arms training. Most of the child soldiers are used as spies, porters, cooks, and messengers. As UNICEF notes, some children were even forced to bury the bodies of their dead friends.
