Recruiting Afghan refugee children under the name "Fatemiyoun Division" to be sent to the Syrian war

The Islamic Republic government recruited Afghan refugee children under the name "Fatemiyoun Division" and sent them to the war in Syria.

According to a human rights activist group in Iran, the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has forced Afghan refugees, especially children, into military service with the promise of financial rewards and legal residency and sent them to fight in Syria. The HRANA news agency also expressed concern by publishing news of the recruitment and use of children under the age of 18 for fighting in Syria.

Following the news, HRANA added: "This report is a series of violations of international humanitarian law (laws of war) and children's rights, and reveals the depth of Iran's involvement in recruiting, training, and sending children to war zones."

The purpose of publishing these reports is to expose the systematic exploitation of vulnerable populations, with a particular focus on Afghan refugees and children, by Iranian-affiliated military and paramilitary forces. The reports were prepared by the Attorney General’s Office, the Human Rights Violators Database, the Revolutionary Guards Initiative, and the HRANA news agency, focusing on the use of children under the age of 18, particularly in the context of war, and primarily involving Afghans and some Pakistanis.

These reports state that Iran has also recruited Afghan children into the Fatemiyoun Division and Pakistani groups into the Zainabiyoun Division. Some Afghans living in Iran have also stated in interviews that they encountered individuals who were sent by Iran to fight in Syria in the Fatemiyoun Division. One Afghan citizen living in Iran, who did not wish to be identified, stated: “A while ago, when the police were arresting us, we slipped unconsciously and one of the Afghans who was limping said he had been shot. The officer on the motorcycle pulled him over and told him that I had gone to Syria and was in the Fatemiyoun Division. They took him behind the motorcycle and let him go again.”

Ghouth Janbar, a former Afghan diplomat in Russia, also said regarding the use of children: "No country has the right to recruit migrant children into their countries, and major international organizations need to take action to address this problem."