Speaking to Sunatimes, ASWJ’s Elbur security boss Abdi Hassan Mohamed said the militant group has ordered local Quran teachers in El-garas, El-qohle and El-lahelay, all in Elbur district to bring over a hundred students into their militants in efforts to counter the allied forces battling it in the region.

He alleged that the group has also assigned teachers who are of the “militant’s ideology” to all Qoranic classes in most of these areas in order to brainwash children attending these classes.

He claimed that Al-Shabaab took advantage of the recent drought and hunger in the country to recruit children into its militias by giving food and other handouts to their parents.

Ahlu Sunna has been accusing the Al-Shabaab group of stepping up child soldier recruitment campaign in the areas under its control and called for immediate actions against the group’s conscription.

Al-Shabaab has also in the past faced international condemnation for the same practice.

On July 20, last year, Amnesty International said children as young as eight years old have been recruited to fight in Somalia’s ongoing civil war.

In its report, Amnesty said most of the young soldiers recruited are between the ages of 10 and 17, adding that some were lured from their homes by promises of gifts like mobile phones while others were kidnapped.

The 90-page report was based on 200 interviews with Somalis who had fled to neighboring countries.

The Amnesty report cites the recruitment of children by armed groups as one of the reasons so many Somalis are fleeing southern and central Somalia.

Elsewhere, heavily armed militants last night raided Ahlu Sunna military base in War-qurun area which lies between Wabho and Da’ of Galgadud region.

ASWJ’s Elbur security boss Abdi Hassan Mohamed confirmed the incident to Bar-kulan, saying that about seven heavily armed militants attached their bases. But he gave no more details regarding the incident.