The Dimensions of International Protection for Children during Armed Conflicts

Abstract

Abstract:                                       

There is no trust in the world more sacred than that of children, and no duty more important than respecting everyone's rights. Protecting and respecting the rights of children is protection for the future of humanity as a whole. Despite the international community's attention to protecting children's rights, we still witness violations of these rights in many parts of the world, with violations resulting from armed conflicts being among the most dangerous. International humanitarian law has provided special protection for children, recognizing them as the most vulnerable. Many international agreements, protocols, governmental, and non-governmental organizations have focused on protecting children's rights during armed conflicts. It is worth noting that Iraqi children are a vivid example of serious violations of children's rights. These violations began with the American invasion in 2003 and continue to this day, classifying Iraqi children as the most affected in the world. Faced with this harsh reality, we decided to explore the dimensions of international protection for children during armed conflicts, presented in two sections. In the first section, we discussed the protection of children in armed conflicts during and after the conflicts, addressing several aspects such as evacuating children from besieged areas, prohibiting their involvement in armed conflicts, as well as providing relief, reuniting them with their families, and protecting them from epidemics and the danger of mines after the end of armed conflicts. In the second section, we examined the mechanisms of international protection of children's rights and leading models in this regard. We discussed the role of global declarations for protecting children, the role of the United Nations in protecting children from the effects of armed conflicts, and then shed light on leading models in protecting children's rights from armed conflicts, focusing on the role of the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). We concluded this research with a conclusion clarifying the most important results we have reached, followed by recommendations for protecting children from armed conflicts.

Keywords: Child protection, International humanitarian law, Violations against children, Armed conflicts