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UNICEF, the UN Children's Fund, said on Friday that children abducted in Burundi's eastern province of Ruyigi were "in great danger" and should be released immediately.
In a statement released in Nairobi, Kenya, the UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, Urban Jonsson, said, "UNICEF strongly condemns the abduction and displacement of these children, the destruction of schools and health centres, and the overall use of children as tools of war."
At least 21 primary school students were still missing, he said, after their abduction on 6 Nov. from a primary school in Ruyigi. There have also been news reports of other abductions in the province and from Burundian refugee camps just across the border in Tanzania. The media has attributed these actions to pro-Hutu rebels they say are operating from or near these camps.
In the northern province of Kayanza, Jonsson said, "over 95 high school students were abducted and subsequently escaped or were released". He said that over 5,000 children have been displaced in Ruyigi province alone, at least 236 of who are separated from their families.
"These are examples of the extreme violation of children's rights taking place as a result of the continuing conflict in Burundi," he said.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
