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Al-Ahed Telegram

"Israel" Rejects Cluster Bomb Ban Treaty

folder_openZionist Entity access_time15 years ago
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Source: Al-Manar TV, 01-06-2008

‘Israeli' Foreign Ministry spokesman Aryeh Mekel said that a comprehensive ban on the use of cluster bombs in all situations was "exaggerated."
‘Israel' was one of a number of countries, including the US, Russia, China, India and Pakistan, that did not take part in negotiations that led to the adoption of a treaty banning the use of cluster bombs on Friday.

The treaty was formally adopted by 111 nations in Ireland. The treaty requires signatories not to use cluster bombs, to destroy existing stockpiles within eight years and to fund programs that clear old battlefields of cluster-bomb duds.

Supporting nations plan to sign the treaty in the Norwegian capital of Oslo in December, and it will come into force in mid-2009. Many speakers appealed to cluster bomb-making nations that boycotted the Dublin talks - particularly the US - to accept its conclusions.

"We don't think such an absolute ban is justified, and a balance between military needs and taking into account humanitarian considerations needs to be found," Mekel claimed.

Mekel added that the treaty signed in Ireland was one of two tracks dealing with the cluster bomb issue. The other track, with which he said Israel was actively involved, began in the UN in January not with the aim of a total ban, but rather finding ways to balance the use of the bombs for specific military purposes with a need to take into account humanitarian needs.

After the July War against Lebanon, ‘Israel' was widely criticized for its use of cluster bombs, and a number of Lebanese have reportedly been martyred from cluster-bomb duds since the war.