You Cannot Target Child Soldiers as if They Were Adults, Can You?: Solutions to Close the Gap Between Law and Morals Concerning Child Soldiers Currently Under Discussion

Abstract

Whether child soldiers should be treated differently, i. e. more favourably than their adult counterparts, has long been the subject of academic and political debate. The aim of this paper is to show the current state of the academic discussion and analyse the different approaches to a solution to the aforementioned question. The paper therefore focuses on the legal framework concerning the legality of targeting child soldiers in armed conflicts. Whereas from a moral perspective, children should be treated differently than adult soldiers due to their status as a special protected group under international law, international humanitarian law does not mirror this assumption and makes no distinction between adult and child soldiers with regard to targeting. This article presents approaches from literature and practice that aim to close this gap. It will be shown that (currently) there is no obligation to treat child soldiers differently from adult soldiers when it comes to their classification as a legitimate military target.