The boy who could be a soldier
A disturbing video of a boy who looks ready to become a combat soldier has surfaced.
The boy was reportedly encountered by a unit of the Israeli Border Police while on a patrol.
The boy is shown quickly and competently moves from one position to another as ordered are called out to him by someone from behind the camera.
The poster of the video on LiveLeak said: "Just to be clear, the soldier met this kid randomly while on a patrol and they have nothing to do with him."
The video brings the subject of child soldiers back to the media forefront after the recent release of a documentary that reportedly showed senior Hamas figures in Gaza discussing the training of child soldiers.
'Strong evidence' of Israel war crimes on 'Black Friday': Amnesty
Israeli strike on Syrian town kills five pro-regime forces: monitor
The documentary, called Children's Army of Hamas was produced by the Israel-based Centre for Near East Policy Research (CNEPR), in conjunction with the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group.
The aim of the documentary was to show the UN that Hamas is breaking international laws and aiding the training of child soldiers.
Senior Hamas official Khala al-Hayya is seen telling young children: "You are the generation that is being trained to fight – although you are young.
"You are being trained for jihad [holy war],” .
In another scene, Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hamad refers to the indoctrination of children and appears to acknowledge they are being trained to do battle, reports Fox News.
“We are strengthening their religious awareness and inducing solidarity with their country. This solidifies their jihad, and their commitment to being a warrior, a curse to Israel," he said.
Morning news break – July 30