Convention bans use of children as soldiers - common in wars of recent years.
Most of the casualties of modern wars are not soldiers but civilians - a high proportion of them children. In the last decade, an estimated 2 million children have been killed in armed conflicts. Perhaps 4 to 5 million more have been disabled, and more than 12 million made homeless. Many more millions have been traumatized by the atrocities they have been forced to witness or take part in. The Convention on the Rights of the Child calls on governments to take special measures to protect children in the event of armed conflict.