An Anti-balaka child soldier wears lucky charms around his neck while he poses for a picture in Ouengo district, 7th arrondissement in Bangui, in a file photo. REUTERS/Emmanuel Braun
BANGUI/GENEVA (Reuters) - Armed factions in Central African Republic agreed on Tuesday to free all child soldiers and other children used as sex slaves or menial workers, boosting U.N.-driven efforts at national reconciliation after two years of turmoil.
The pact signed by the eight main militia groups in the landlocked ex-French colony covers an estimated 6,000 to 10,000 children, according to United Nations child agency UNICEF. Armed groups also pledged to end the recruitment of children.
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