[The 2006 Israel-Lebanon war ended more than a year ago but I want to bring your attention to the ongoing and disturbing issue of Israel’s absurd and appalling use of cluster bombs.]
Israel dropped over 1 million cluster bombs in Lebanon in the 2006 war. 90% of those bombs were dropped in the last 72 hours of the war when both sides knew that a ceasefire was imminent. Many remain unexploded. UN Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland said, “Every day, people are maimed, wounded and are killed by these ordnances.”
Cluster Bomb’s Overall Track Record: “98% of 13,306 recorded cluster munitions casualties that are registered with Handicap International are civilians. Cluster munitions are opposed by many individuals and hundreds of groups, such as the Red Cross, the Cluster Munition Coalition and the United Nations, because of the high proportion of civilians that have fallen victim to the weapon. Since February 2005, Handicap International called for cluster munitions to be prohibited and collected hundreds of thousands of signatures to support its call.”
Israeli Admission: Ha’aretz: “What we did was insane and monstrous, we covered entire towns in cluster bombs,” the head of an IDF rocket unit in Lebanon said regarding the use of cluster bombs and phosphorous shells during the war. Quoting his battalion commander, the rocket unit head stated that the IDF fired around 1,800 cluster bombs, containing over 1.2 million cluster bomblets. [Unfortunately, Israel still refuses to give details about the precise locations of the cluster bomb delivery targets.]
14 Responses to Cluster Bombs in Lebanon