Viral Child Soldiers on TikTok: The ‘Disney Stars’ of Sudan’s Civil War

A Bellingcat investigation has found that child soldiers, referred to as “lion cubs,” linked to Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) are gaining viral fame on TikTok, with videos attracting millions of views. These videos often depict children in military uniforms, posing with fighters, delivering speeches, and, in some cases, armed. Child soldier experts state this content, which normalizes and celebrates fighting, could encourage further recruitment. After Bellingcat’s inquiry, TikTok removed seven of 12 reported accounts, with the platform later removing all remaining accounts featuring child soldier content, which violates its guidelines and international definitions of child soldiers. This highlights the challenge of content moderation concerning conflict-related exploitation on social media platforms.