Afghan Teenagers Recruited in Iran to Fight in Syria, Group Says
- 7 years ago
Afghan Teenagers Recruited in Iran to Fight in Syria, Group Says
The group, Human Rights Watch, said it had verified the deaths of eight Afghan children in Iran, who were recruited
and ultimately died fighting for the Fatemiyoun division in Syria, by inspecting tombstones in cemeteries in Iran, cross-referencing them against the names of fighters reported dead in Iranian news reports, and by speaking to the families of several of the teenagers.
The Human Rights Watch report demonstrates that Afghan fighters younger than 18 have died in Syria,
and it sheds new light on the recruitment of Afghan Shiites to fight in Syria, where Iran backs the Syrian government in a multisided war.
Human Rights Watch contends that many Afghan refugees in Iran who were said to have volunteered to fight
in Syria were motivated by promises of legal residency status and residency permits for their families.
According to the group’s report, some of the children’s epitaphs identify their place of death as Syria, while some tombstones bear the inscription "defender
of the shrine" — a reference to Sayyida Zainab, an important shrine in Syria revered by the Shiite sect of Islam, to which many Afghans and Iranians belong.
1, 2017
BEIRUT, Lebanon — Afghan immigrant children as young as 14 are being recruited in Iran to fight —
and die — in Syria, a prominent human rights organization said Sunday.
Tara Sepehri Far said that We spoke to one person who fought as part of the Fatemiyoun Division and he said
that he was able to receive a residency permit upon return,
The group, Human Rights Watch, said it had verified the deaths of eight Afghan children in Iran, who were recruited
and ultimately died fighting for the Fatemiyoun division in Syria, by inspecting tombstones in cemeteries in Iran, cross-referencing them against the names of fighters reported dead in Iranian news reports, and by speaking to the families of several of the teenagers.
The Human Rights Watch report demonstrates that Afghan fighters younger than 18 have died in Syria,
and it sheds new light on the recruitment of Afghan Shiites to fight in Syria, where Iran backs the Syrian government in a multisided war.
Human Rights Watch contends that many Afghan refugees in Iran who were said to have volunteered to fight
in Syria were motivated by promises of legal residency status and residency permits for their families.
According to the group’s report, some of the children’s epitaphs identify their place of death as Syria, while some tombstones bear the inscription "defender
of the shrine" — a reference to Sayyida Zainab, an important shrine in Syria revered by the Shiite sect of Islam, to which many Afghans and Iranians belong.
1, 2017
BEIRUT, Lebanon — Afghan immigrant children as young as 14 are being recruited in Iran to fight —
and die — in Syria, a prominent human rights organization said Sunday.
Tara Sepehri Far said that We spoke to one person who fought as part of the Fatemiyoun Division and he said
that he was able to receive a residency permit upon return,