TEL ABYAD, Syria

A child from Syria's northeast Manbij district was kidnapped by the terrorist PKK/YPG, the 20th such abduction this year, a Kurdish group spokesman said on Friday.

Redor al-Ahmed of Independent Kurdish Rabita party told Anadolu that H.M.A, a 12-year-old from Syria's Manbij district, fell victim to PKK/YPG abduction.

Ahmed lamented the terror group's tactic of isolating abducted children from their families and taking them to camps for arms training, in violation of international law.

Since the start of the year, the terrorist PKK/YPG has reportedly abducted around 20 children across Syria’s Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and Hasakah provinces, aiming to enlist them into its armed ranks.

PKK kidnapped more than 1,200 children in 2022

The UN's 2022 Children in Annual Armed Conflicts report said that over 1,200 children were abducted and coerced into fighting by the PKK and its Syrian affiliates the SDF and YPG.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed grave concern over the exploitation of children by the PKK, urging an end to their recruitment and the release of all children held in their ranks. The use of minors as combatants is a violation of international law.

In its nearly 40-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 more than 40,000 people, including women, children and infants. The YPG is PKK’s Syrian offshoot.

*Writing by Muhammed Yasin Gungor in Istanbul