There are significant numbers of child soldiers who are estimated to be used in Mali. It is also one of the countries that is listed by the UN Secretary-General's report that comes out every year on the state of children in armed conflict. We know for sure there are at least four armed groups that are using and recruiting child soldiers in Mali for a variety of purposes.
I want to also make it clear to those who may not understand this issue clearly. When we talk about child soldiers, we're not just referring to the children who are on the battlefield with an AK-47s. We are talking about a whole range of issues. The children can be the porters, the messengers, the spies, doing support functions. What's important for you to recognize and understand is that this is also the most incredibly important time, because that is when you can prevent them from being indoctrinated further, or from entering onto the battlefield.
This is a point we should be clear on. It's not just about our being afraid of facing children on the front line, but it's also about what we can proactively do to prevent that from occurring further.