Palestinian Army Cadets Corps

The Palestinian Army Cadets Corps (Arabic: فيلق تلاميذ الجيش الفلسطيني faylaq talāmīdh al-jaysh al-falasṭīnī) is a national youth program for boys and girls ages 11 to 17, sponsored by the Palestinian Army Primary Reserve and funded by the Palestinian government.

The corps originated as the Patriotic Youth of Palestine during the 1948 Arab–Israeli war, founded by reserve components of the All-Palestine Army shortly before the signing of the armistice agreement in 1949. After the 1971 coup, the cadets program was improved and greatly expanded upon and modernized by the new Ba'athist government. Today, almost every municipality in Palestine has a local branch, each operating under the aegis of the local Primary Reserve regiment; all cadet instructors are commissioned or non-commissioned officers of the Primary Reserve, who are specially trained in youth leadership and development.

Despite each cadets branch's association with a particular reserve regiment, cadets are still considered civilians and in no way obligated to the military. Administration of the program and much of its day-to-day support is handled by a civilian non-governmental organisation called the Palestinian National Cadets League, which also administers the Palestinian Naval Cadets Corps and the Palestinian Air Cadets Corps.

Boys who have served at least four years in the cadets are automatically exempt from the draft, which obligates all males to 22 months of service in the armed forces upon reaching age 19. Nevertheless, it is not uncommon for youth of either sex to volunteer for service after graduating from the cadets; close to 40% of female and 50% of male former cadets volunteer for military service after graduation from high school despite their draft exemption.