Cluster munitions

A cluster munition, or cluster bomb, is a single canister containing between a dozen and a few hundred submunitions, each the size of a drink can.

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Cluster munitions can be dropped from aircraft or fired from the ground and are designed to break open in mid-air, releasing the submunitions and scattering them over an area that can be as big as several football fields.

Cluster munitions are indiscrimate weapons.

When the submunitions explode, they fire hundreds of fragments of metal that travel at the speed of a bullet. Anybody within the area, military or civilian, is very likely to be killed or seriously injured. Unlike landmines, which are designed to maim rather than kill, cluster bombs are much more likely to kill and to cause multiple casualties. Even if a victim lives they will suffer various injuries such as loss of limbs, burns, ruptured ear drums, blindness and internal complications.

Often many submunitions fail to explode on impact, and huge quantities are left on the ground, remaining a fatal threat to civilians long after a conflict ends.

In many countries accidents occur when ordinary people try to move unexploded submunitions due to economic necessity, curiosity, or social responsibility. Civilians have to clear land for farming or to prevent children from playing with them. In Afghanistan for example, shepherds, farmers and children collecting firewood are common victims. In many poor communities people are often injured trying to salvage bomb containers in order to sell the scrap metal.

Thanks to the Convention on Cluster Munitions, these weapons are illegal under international law as of 1st August 2010. However, there is still a lot of work to be done to get all countries to join the Convention and make sure that they live up to their obligations.

To find out the latest statistics on cluster munitions, visit the Cluster Munition Monitor 2011 report www.the-monitor.org/cmm/2011. Or look at the major findings of the report.