By EDITH M. LEDERER, The Associated Press Wednesday, April 29, 2009; 4:49 PM
UNITED NATIONS -- A young woman abducted and repeatedly raped by the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda told the Security Council on Wednesday how she became a rifle-toting child soldier. She urged the U.N.'s most powerful body to stop the suffering of children in wars.
"I still wait for some of my friends to return," Grace Akallo said, "and I hope that everyone here will be committed to bring people like my friends home."
Council members responded to the plea from the former child soldier _ now a graduate student in the United States _ with rare sustained applause. Many, including U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice, assured her that her message had been heard.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly supported Akallo's appeal, telling the council: "You must respond to her courage and resilience with action."
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