The Syrian wing of the PKK, the YPG, has abducted another child to recruit in its ranks in Syria’s northern Aleppo province, local sources said.
YPG terrorists abducted S.M.A., 15, in the Aleppo city center on Oct. 10, Redor Al Ahmet, spokesperson of the Independent Syrian Kurds Association, told Anadolu Agency (AA).
Underlining that YPG terrorists have intensified child abduction cases recently to get more fighters, Al Ahmet said the terrorist group kidnapped some six children in October.
The terrorist group usually takes young people and children it kidnaps or detains to terror camps for armed training, barring them from communicating with their families.
Local people living in areas held by the YPG have long suffered from its atrocities, as the terrorist organization has a notorious record of human rights abuses, ranging from kidnappings, recruitment of child soldiers, torture, ethnic cleansing and forced displacement in Syria. The YPG has forced young people from areas under its control to join its forces within the so-called "compulsory conscription in the duty of self-defense."
Since its foundation, the PKK has forcibly taken at least one child from families that fail to "pay taxes" in support of the group. To fill its ranks, the PKK has continuously raided villages and kidnapped young adults aged 15 to 20 through violent means. In addition to forced conscription, the PKK also carries out propaganda campaigns targeting university students. The terrorist group's approach has remained largely consistent, according to statements by captured or surrendered members of the organization.
The YPG/PKK continues to recruit child fighters despite signing an agreement with the U.N. for their release.