The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child categorically prohibits involving children in war operations. But despite international conventions, minors continue to be used as soldiers in military conflicts around the world. Europe is no exception -- thousands of child soldiers fought during the Balkan wars between 1991 and 1995. Mirjana Rakela, from RFE/RL's South Slavic and Albanian-Languages Service, received the Lorenzo Natali Prize on November 15 for her reports on child soldiers, first broadcast in November 2007.
