Boys rescued from Taliban tell sad accounts

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MINGORA, Pakistan — The Pakistani army says it has so far found 20 boys in the Swat valley like I.H., who is only being identified by his initials for his safety.

The army believes the Taliban hoped to turn the boys into informants, fighters and even suicide bombers. Some escaped; others were rescued by authorities. Maj Nasir Khan said many more are believed to be in the hands of militants.

Three of the boys appeared to be younger than 10 and were visibly traumatised, occasionally breaking into tears. The others were mostly in their mid-teens. Of the six who spoke to the AP, most said they were made to clean dishes or undergo rigorous physical training.

I.H., who said he is 12 but looks much younger, was snatched off the streets and driven to a training camp. "We were just playing" in the village when a car drove up. “They blindfolded us."

B.K., a 15-year-old from Mingora, said he was lured into a car. "They took me to a mountain place that was a training centre" where he and other boys were woken before dawn for prayers, followed by strenuous physical exercise, he said. "I was told that I would be trained for jihad to fight against the army and to kill soldiers," adding that there were another 50 to 60 boys at the camp. He said an uncle managed to negotiate his release.

M.K., a 16-year-old who already has some gray hair, said he was returning home after buying groceries when a car pulled up and offered him a lift. But when they reached the turn for his house, the bearded men in the car gagged and blindfolded him, and drove him to a training camp where there were about 250 other boys, aged between 12 and eighteen.

"They told us jihad [holy war] is the duty of every Muslim," M.K. said. He said he was told it was OK to kill your parents if they disagreed.

"I was shocked. I thought, how can someone kill their parents?" the boy said, his voice barely audible.

Spokesman Lt Col Akthar Abbas said the army is setting up a rehabilitation programme for the boys to provide them with education and psychotherapy.

[AP]