US defends detaining children in Iraq

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2008

GENEVA (AFP) — The United States on Wednesday defended its detention of around 500 minors in Iraq, saying it had developed an "extensively robust" programme to meet the special needs of child combatants.

"The US does detain juveniles that are encountered on the battlefield," Sandra Hodgkinson, deputy assistant secretary at the Department of Defense, said here.

"We go to great lengths when we do detain juveniles to recognise the special needs of the juvenile population and to provide them with a safe environment away from hostilities," she told journalists.

The Pentagon confirmed last week a report by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that the US army is currently holding around 500 minors in detention in Iraq, as well as nearly a dozen juveniles in...