Article

2003-05-30 Britain

Allied use of cluster bombs illegal, minister admits

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Steve White 2003-05-30 12:18 am|| || Front Page|| [4 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 The text of the report does not support the headline. The Minister does not 'admit' to illegal use of cluster bombs.

Also if the USA did not sign the relevant treaty then the Aliied part of the heading is clearly misleading.

Sticking to the facts is not a strong point of the Independent.

Posted by Phil B 2003-05-30 00:59:53|| 2003-05-30 00:59:53|| Front Page Top

#2 To me the whole concept that one kind of bomb the goes KABOOM is more legal than another bomb that goes KABOOM is nonsense. I don't care what we used as long as we killed the bad guys and minimized losses to the good guys.

Cluster bombs are a highly effective munition. I am not so naive as too say they never landed on civilian targets, but I would suggest the United States took great pains to minimize civilian casualties at the risk of their forces.

Posted by Douglas De Bono 2003-05-30 07:01:31|| [www.douglasdebono.com] 2003-05-30 07:01:31|| Front Page Top

#3 Show me the casualties.

Posted by Anomalus 2003-05-30 07:21:09|| 2003-05-30 07:21:09|| Front Page Top

#4 They're lucky it was Tommy Franks in charge and not me. Fallujah would be a smoking hole in the ground 12 hours after a "get out of town - it's time to pay the price, you Baathist a**holes" broadcast

Posted by Frank G 2003-05-30 08:57:26|| 2003-05-30 08:57:26|| Front Page Top

#5 Douglas De Bono, the problem with cluster bombs is that they do not always explode on impact and then act sort of like mines.

They need to ensure that the bombs explode when they are suppossed to, not remove the bombs from the arsenal.

Posted by Yank 2003-05-30 11:46:57|| 2003-05-30 11:46:57|| Front Page Top

#6 What's Landmine Action's position on Palestinian human bombs or hijacked civilian airliner missiles?
Did they send pissy little letters to Yasshole and Binny protesting that?

Posted by tu3031 2003-05-30 12:33:00|| 2003-05-30 12:33:00|| Front Page Top

#7 Actually a percentage of the submunitions in a CBU are normally set with a time delay. If I recall correctly that can be up to 12 hours. (Don't bet the farm on that number)
Consider a prime target for a CBU, an artillery battery. The submunitions won't, except as a matter of pure luck, destroy the gun tubes. Instead they blow up the ready ammo and hash up the cannon cockers. The delayed fuse submunitions then make it difficult and dangerous to salvage the tubes and put them back in use. That's a good thing.
CBUs are not particularly well suited for destroying targets in a city setting, the bomblets are too small to take down a building and you can't aim the individual bomblets. They are an area weapon.
I would submit that the only way a CBU would be used in an urban warfare setting would be to close the streets.

Posted by Peter 2003-05-30 13:00:23|| 2003-05-30 13:00:23|| Front Page Top

with yesterday's admission, proved the Geneva Conventions were knowingly breached. "Mr Ingram has admitted the Government acted outside the law," he said.

So?

Posted by Celissa 2003-05-30 18:11:19|| [www.celissasblog.com/weblog.php] 2003-05-30 18:11:19|| Front Page Top

09:28 Raptor
09:16 Raptor
08:22 Aris Katsaris
08:08 Raptor
08:03 Aris Katsaris
07:59 Aris Katsaris
07:31 Raptor
07:25 Raptor
07:17 Raptor
06:58 Anon1
06:48 Raptor
06:39 Raptor
06:03 Raptor
00:33 mojo
00:32 Tremor
23:54 Celissa
23:46 True German Ally
22:32 Barbara Skolaut
22:16 Anonymous Troll
22:14 Anonymous Troll
22:10 Anonymous Troll
22:07 Bomb-a-rama
22:04 Bomb-a-rama
21:50 Bomb-a-rama