Targeted by Terrorists: Child Recruitment, Exploitation and Reintegration in Indonesia, Iraq and Nigeria

This research study was carried out by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in a collaboration between the End Violence Against Children team of the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Section; the Research, Innovation and Partnership Section of the Research and Trend Analysis Branch; and the Terrorism Prevention Branch. This study was carried out in Indonesia, Iraq and Nigeria with the aim of increasing knowledge regarding children associated with groups designated “terrorist” (henceforth terrorist groups). Children’s association with such groups and their abduction, recruitment, use and exploitation by them has gained greater visibility in recent years, with reports indicating that thousands of children are affected worldwide. The groups groom and indoctrinate them, use them as servants, sexually abuse and exploit them, and directly involve them in fighting and various auxiliary activities including serving as spies and informants. The research aims to identify the drivers and manifestations of children’s association with terrorist groups in specific contexts, examine whether and how terrorist groups pose unique protection risks for children, and analyze existing interventions responding to this phenomenon. It explores the issues across three axes of investigation: child association, responses from and coordination among actors, and impact of the representation of children on policy.