Afghan generation knows only conflict as war turns 18

According to UN figures, 42 percent of Afghanistan's population of 35 million - including this young ice cream street vendor outside Herat - is under the age of 14.

Afghanistan's war cost 13-year-old shoe shiner Hameedullah his education. Poverty forced Sabir, 11, to flee home and sell dried fruits on Kabul's streets. Niyamathullah, 9, hangs out in a park, looking for work.

Such is the lot of many a child in Afghanistan, which this week passes another sombre milestone. On Monday, the conflict turned 18, meaning every single Afghan child now has known only war.