Iranian authorities confirm that children over the age of twelve are being recruited into the paramilitary Basij militia to guard the population and man roadblocks.
"I came across two checkpoints in northern Tehran with armed teenagers, 13 or 14 years old, stopping cars," a woman who drove at 9 p.m. on Monday told AFP.
One of the boys opened the passenger door and sat next to her.
"He asked for my phone and checked everything, even my photographs. It was extremely offensive," she says.
The Iranian population has been disconnected from the global network for over a month - what is available is a state-controlled, isolated network. Many who have managed to connect to the internet via VPN services or satellite connections have been arrested by Iranian authorities.
"They open car doors without permission, open glove compartments and check phones," another anonymous Tehran resident told the news agency.
“Want to be involved”
Rahim Nadali, an official in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), stated on state television last week that the Basij militia force is being flooded with young volunteers.
"Given the age of those applying to join, we have now lowered the minimum age to twelve years, as children between twelve and thirteen want to be involved," he said.
In addition to stopping cars, Basij's supporters patrol at night to suppress any attempts at rebellion.
The idea is to prevent calls from the opposition for people to take to the streets, Iran expert Hamidreza Azizi told AFP.
“A war crime”
The international human rights organization Human Rights Watch states that the recruitment of children under the age of 15 for military purposes is a war crime.
"What this ultimately comes down to is that Iranian authorities are apparently willing to risk the lives of children for a little extra manpower," Bill Van Esveld, the organization's deputy director for children's rights, said in a statement Monday.
Under the umbrella of the powerful Revolutionary Guard is the so-called Basij militia, which consists of volunteer recruits who, in addition to their regular jobs, are ready to defend the Islamic Republic.
Those recruited into the militia are often poor people who, with promises of a higher standard of living, obey orders to the letter. Many have been indoctrinated from childhood to be loyal to the regime, no matter what.
