Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been reported to have the highest number of grave violations against children in armed conflicts in the world for the second year running, with at least 2,420 kids killed, maimed, abducted and sexually abused, according to Save the Children International (SCI).

The Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), yesterday, in a statement said United Nations’ (UN) yearly Report on Children and Armed Conflict verified 3,377 grave violations against children in DRC, out of which about 46 per cent involved recruitment of children, some as young as five, by armed forces or groups.

SCI noted that since 2018, the number infants killed and maimed in conflicts in the country has progressively risen to 699 in 2022 from the 363 children tally of the previous year.

DRC also has the highest number of child abductions globally, with 730 of them forcibly taken from their homes last year. Most of kids were abducted for recruitment and use by armed groups, but some were deployed for extortion, sexual violence and torture.

Country Director, SCI, Greg Ramm, said most of the recruited children were used in combat or support roles, with others recruited as guards and spies.

Twenty-six children were verified as being used as ‘fetish keepers’, a term, which refers to them possessing magical powers.

Head, Conflict and Humanitarian Policy and Advocacy, James Denselow, urged world leaders, donors, United Nations member-states, and NGOs to protect children in the East Africa nation, by holding perpetrators to account for their evil deeds.