A/HRC/21/50 his group was 14. The same interviewee stated that boys between the ages of 15 and 17 also performed duties including delivering messages between FSA units, cooking for units in the field and delivering medical supplies to field hospitals in front line units. He stated that no girls fought or worked as auxiliary support to the anti-Government armed groups. 30. Two other interviewees, both minors, stated that anti-Government armed groups used children aged 15 years and above to assist in the loading of ammunition. 31. The use of children as part of medical evacuation teams and as couriers has exposed them to hostilities. One interviewee stated that one minor, who had been part of a medical evacuation team, was shot and killed by a sniper while attempting to evacuate a woman and two young men from Hama city. 32. In a separate incident in March, the commission was informed about four boys, under 18 who were injured by sniper fire trying to evacuate injured from Helfaya. According to the same interviewee, three boys, one 15 year old and two 17 year olds, were captured by Government forces while working as part of a medical evacuation team in Hama city. 33. A 16 year old boy who was shot by a sniper outside of Homs while evacuating a wounded girl, explained that he was volunteering to assist the FSA with medical evacuations “… because it is all they [FSA] will allow me to do… How can I do nothing when they kill my family and my community?‖ 34. The commission received assurances from Colonel Riad al-Asaad that an FSA policy not to use children in combat is in place. There is evidence to suggest, however, that this policy is not uniformly being adhered to by the FSA and other anti-Government armed groups. It is also unclear whether the understanding of ―in combat‖ by the anti-Government armed groups encompasses the auxiliary roles described above. Legal conclusions 35. As the anti-Government armed groups are not State parties, they are not bound under the Optional Protocol, which sets 18 as the minimum age for direct participation in hostilities, recruitment into armed groups and compulsory recruitment by Governments. 36. The commission observes, however, that the conduct of anti-Government armed groups, as a party to an armed conflict, is within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court which has made ―conscripting or enlisting children under the age of fifteen years into armed forces or groups or using them to participate actively in hostilities‖ a war crime. The term ―participate‖ covers both direct participation in combat and also active participation in military activities linked to combat, for example scouting, spying, sabotage and the use of children as decoys, couriers or at military checkpoints. Use of children in a direct support function such as acting as bearers to take supplies to the front line, or activities at the front line itself, would be included. 37. The commission considers that there is currently insufficient information to reach a finding that anti-Government armed groups have been using children under the age of 15 to participate actively in hostilities. It notes with concern, however, reports that children under the age of 18 are fighting and performing auxiliary roles for anti-Government armed groups. 99