Somalia - former child combatant tells his story

A recent UN report found that child recruitment in Somalia is on the rise with the militant Al Shabaab group mainly responsible. For those children who manage to escape – UNICEF offers a chance of rehabilitation. In 2016 the authorities in Puntland in northern Somalia captured 66 children during fighting with Al Shabaab. The younger ones were sent to a Centre in Mogadishu but those over 15 were initially imprisoned and given heavy sentences. They are now in the Puntland Reintegration Centre supported by UNI