Extremist groups turn children into tools of war across Africa and Yemen

Al-Qaeda and its affiliates are exploiting children from desperate families and isolated communities across West Africa, the Sahel, Horn of Africa and Yemen, by grooming them to carry out espionage and suicide attacks.

The extremists lure vulnerable children into their ranks with false promises of money, food and status, Germany-based human rights researcher Mohammad Taher Qayoumi told Salaam Times.

"Some families, just to survive, put their children at risk," he said.

Religious scholars and human rights experts have repeatedly denounced the targeting of children as a violation of Islamic principles and international law.

"When terrorist groups send children into war, they are in fact presenting a distorted and dangerous image of Islam by twisting religious teachings," Kabul-based religious scholar Mawlawi Abdul Fattah Mohammadi told Salaam Times.

"The exploitation of children for warfare and suicide attacks is not only a crime against humanity but also a betrayal of the essence of Islam," he said.

"Islam explicitly mandates the protection of children and strictly forbids their exploitation in military operations," Mohammadi added.

Through the strategic recruitment of minors, extremist groups seek to cultivate a new generation of fighters loyal to their violent objectives.

These groups deploy children as operational tools, suicide bombers and intelligence agents through indoctrination programs that combine propaganda, ideological manipulation, and psychological pressure, Qayoumi said.

Stand against extremist predators

Security gaps in regions with weak governance have created dangerous opportunities for al-Qaeda to infiltrate schools, mosques and remote villages, according to Ankara-based security analyst Mohammad Munir Ziayee.

"Security gaps in rural areas, where government presence is minimal and educational and cultural services are at their lowest, have become hunting grounds for al-Qaeda to target children," Ziayee told Salaam Times.

"These groups train children as future soldiers, spies, and even suicide bombers. They exploit their vulnerability to further their violent objectives," he said.

"This not only deepens the humanitarian crisis but also destroys future generations and local communities."

Islamic scholars emphasize that such practices fundamentally contradict religious law and human dignity.

"Islam is a religion of mercy and justice, and any exploitation of the innocent, especially children, is a clear violation of religious values," Kunduz-based religious scholar Mawlawi Din Mohammad Haqyar told Salaam Times.

The exploitation of children by terrorist groups presents a major threat to future peace and security in war-affected regions, Haqyar warned.

"We have repeatedly called on religious communities to stand against such inhumane and deviant practices and to convey the true interpretation of Islam to the people," he said.