Over 500 juveniles held by US in Iraq and Afghanistan

A juvenile is defined as an individual under the age of 18. Since 2002, the US says it has detained for some duration of time 2,500 juveniles, most of them in the massive prison complexes constructed by the US military in Iraq.

The heavy arrest of juveniles in Iraq underscores the fact that US operations are directed at the population as a whole and often involve widespread and indiscriminate arrests.

The US also admits to having detained eight juveniles at Guantánamo Bay, though it claims that it no longer holds anyone there under 18. At least two individuals who were under 18 at the time of their arrest are still held at Guantánamo Bay, and face military commissions. Other agencies have estimated significantly higher numbers of juveniles held at Guantánamo.

The number of juvenile prisoners increased sharply last year, corresponding to the so-called surge in Iraq. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the number of juveniles held in Iraq increased from 200 in September 2005, to 250 in May 2007, and to 800 in September 2007. Arrests of children in Iraq rose to an average of 100 per month in 2007, up from 25 per month in 2006.

A report in Agence France-Press in December 2007 reported a figure of 950 children held at one prison complex at Camp Cropper, near Baghdad. The figures have appeared to have dropped somewhat since then, at least officially.