The members of the United Nations Security Council received an annual report dedicated to the situation of children in areas of conflict and war, which detailed how some parties were involved in sending numbers of them to fight in Libya.

According to the report submitted by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, the United Nations investigated cases of boys sent to fight with Syrians in the ranks of various parties to the Libyan conflict after they were kidnapped by armed groups in Syria.

The report found that grave violations against children were committed by all parties to the conflict, both state and non-state actors.

Between 2016 and 2020, state actors including national and international forces and coalitions were responsible for at least 26 percent of all violations.

Non-state actors were responsible for about 58 percent of all verified violations, the report said this underscored the importance of engaging with all parties to conflicts to achieve a meaningful end to and prevention of violations against children.

"The Secretary-General's report leaves little to the imagination," said Catherine Russell, Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF).

She called on Council members to “pause for a moment to gauge the appalling information contained in the Secretary-General’s report.”