In 2017 UN Secretary-General António Guterres commented on a report from the UN security council which estimated that of Al-Shabaab's fighting strength was made up of over fifty percent children, with some as young as nine being sent to the front. The report verified that 6163 children had been recruited between 1 April 2010 and 31 July 2016 of which 230 were girls. Al-Shabab accounted for 4213, seventy percent of verified cases.