Thousands of child soldiers have been withdrawn from the Afghan National Army (ANA) and police in line with a United Nations convention, a deputy minister said. As many as 3,000 teenagers were expelled from the country's security organs in compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child that prohibits recruitment of individuals under 18 into the armed services. Deputy Minister of Labour, Social, Martyr and Disabled Affairs Wasil Momand said the action had been taken with the cooperation of security forces. The step was initiated after they received a questionnaire from the United Nations about the presence of teenagers in Afghan army and police, he added. Children withdrawn from military institutions would be trained and educated in different fields, Momand promised, acknowledging their current situation in most provinces offered cause for concern. Afghan laws protecting the rights of children had not been implemented and the role of courts in this regard had been far from satisfactory, Momand deplored.