I'll just start posting some stuff and hope everyone starts again

"In a brief and little-noticed announcement on Monday, the White House said President Barack Obama had decided to exempt Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sudan and Yemen from the Child Soldiers Prevention Act of 2008, which prohibits funding for foreign governments' militaries if they recruit or use child soldiers.

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In Sudan, where citizens will vote on possible secession between north and south in 2011, the US government currently funds military education for the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) - the southern Sudanese armed forces - and the memo states that prohibiting funding would "preclude the ability to deliver critical training necessary to professionalize the SPLA".

As of December, the memo says, the SPLA included around 1,200 children - boys and girls ages 12 to 17.

"Some of these children serve as combatants, and others, including those under 15 years old, serve a variety of functions, including as guards, porters, and cooks," the memo says."\

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/10/2010102992129404673.html