Exclusive: Child Soldiers Recall Learning Lessons of War Instead of the Classroom

Dec. 7, 2006 — -- This holiday season, children across America will unwrap presents of virtual combat -- best-selling video games that simulate battle, with names like "Gears of War" and "Far Cry Vengeance."

But elsewhere, other children will play real war games.

Across Asia, Africa and Latin America, children as young as 6 years old are being forced into life as child soldiers.

Children you'd expect to see in a classroom are carrying AK-47s instead of books. Adult instructors are teaching their tiny pupils how to shoot to kill, instead of arithmetic.

The film "Blood Diamond," which stars Leonardo DiCaprio and will open nationwide in theaters Friday, follows the story of a Sierra Leone man who loses his young son to war funded by the sale of diamonds.

In reality, life as a child soldier is just as horrifying and perhaps more brutal than the story depicted in the DiCaprio film, as illustrated in footage of real child soldiers shown exclusively to ABC News.

"They'd whip us as punishment. If you made a mistake, they'd whip you up to 70 or even 120 times," said one child soldier in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

"They captured us as we were fleeing. If you refused [to join the soldiers,] they'd shoot you dead," said another child in the Congo who was interviewed by Amnesty International.

Under international law, the recruitment and use of soldiers younger than 18 years old is prohibited.

The recruitment and use of children younger than 15 is considered a war crime.

Yet in several countries -- particularly Sri Lanka, the Congo, the Ivory Coast, Colombia and Afghanistan -- the use of child soldiers is widespread.

According to the U.N. Children's Fund, roughly 300,000 child soldiers worldwide are participating in 30 armed conflicts.

Jimmie Briggs, author of "Innocents Lost: When Child Soldiers Go to War," said child soldiers were often used instead of adults because they were usually immature, very pliable, and had fewer inhibitions.