Washington: Around 500 minors are currently detained by the US army in Iraq, as well as nearly a dozen juveniles in Afghanistan, a US civil liberties group revealed.

"Since 2002, the United States has held approximately 2,500 individuals under the age of 18 at the time of their capture in Guantanamo Bay, in Iraq, and in Afghanistan," said a US government report for the UN children's agency, made public by the American Civil Liberties Union.

"As of April 2008,US forces held approximately 500 juveniles" in Iraq, where "all detainees, regardless of age, are held by US forces as imperative threats to security at the request of the sovereign Iraqi government and pursuant to a UN Security Council Resolution," the report said.

Pentagon spokesman Jeffrey Gordon confirmed the report was true but gave no further comment. The number of minors in US detention in Iraq rose as high as 800 in 2007.

In addition, around 10 minors are currently held in US custody in Afghanistan's Bagram prison, and are considered "enemy combatants."

However, Washington said it currently has no minors at its prison facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, though two prisoners Omar Khadr and Mohammed Jawad were captured when they were under the age of 18 and remain in custody awaiting prosecution.

"Of the eight juveniles who were detained at Guantanamo Bay, only two remain, who are now 21 and approximately 23 years old, respectively, and are facing trial by military commission," the report read.
Source : PTI