ATFL-LC Action Alert

American Task Force for Lebanon Legislative Council

Stop the Carnage, Ban the Cluster Bomb!

This young Lebanese boy lost both legs when he stepped on an unexploded bomblet. The 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah ended in the summer of 2006, but hundreds of thousands of unexploded cluster munitions that Israel dropped on Lebanon are a terrible remnant of that war. Lebanese are still being killed or maimed by the bomblets (many U.S.-made).

If left on the ground, a slight disturbance may cause bomblets to explode. Worse, many bomblets are brightly colored, with others attached to small parachutes, making them look like toys and enticing kids to pick them up. No international treaties outlaw the use of cluster bombs, although the Geneva Conventions contain laws to protect civilians during conflict.

Unexploded cluster munitions have killed 25 civilians and 13 deminers and permanently wounded 217 people, including the young boy in the picture to the right who lost both of his legs to Israel's unexploded cluster bombs in Lebanon. (Data and photo source: UN Mine Action Coordination Centre of South Lebanon)

What You Can Do About These Insidious Weapons

SEND THE MESSAGE BELOW to President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, your state's U.S. Senators, your Member of Congress, and Sen. Leahy to restrict and limit the use, transfer or sale of cluster bombs.
More then a year later, only 20% of the cluster bombs in Lebanon have been cleared. The main obstacle is Israel's refusal to provide targeting data. See the list of more than thirty organizations that have signed a letter to Secretary Rice calling for Israel to release the list of cluster bomb target sites.
Read how a teen lost her leg to a cluster bomb.
Read the on-the-ground ATFL report on the unexploded ordnance problem in Lebanon, "A Million Unexploded Cluster Bomblets: The Deadly Legacy of Israel's Assault on Lebanon."
See more photos of cluster bomb victims at the website for the UN Mine Action Coordination Centre of South Lebanon, the agency responsible for clearing the bombs from Lebanon.

Make a tax-deductible donation to support ATFL's "Stop the Carnage, Ban the Cluster Bomb" campaign.

July 30, 2010

Subject:

President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, Members of Congress

Hundreds of thousands of unexploded cluster munitions, many U.S.-made, that Israel dropped on Lebanon in the 2006 summer war with Hezbollah continue to plague Lebanon, killing and maiming hundreds of civilians, many of them children. I support Senator Patrick Leahy's call for the U.S. State Department to release the results of its investigation into whether Israel's use of these weapons in civilian areas violated U.S. arms export laws. To see the effects of the cluster bomb infestation on the civilians of south Lebanon, click on the links below: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/world/interactives/lebcbomb/ http://www.atfl.org/pdf/ContinuousWarWashPost120507.pdf http://www.atfl.org/pdf/Portrait_Zayoun120507.pdf See the list of more than thirty organizations that have signed a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice calling for Israel to release the list of cluster bomb target sites to the UN team in charge of clearing the sites in Lebanon: http://www.atfl.org/orgs.htm If left on the ground, a slight disturbance may cause bomblets to explode. Worse, many bomblets are brightly colored, with others attached to small parachutes, making them look like toys and enticing children to pick them up. We call on you to take the following urgent steps to solve the cluster bomb problem which damages the social, economic and political life of Lebanon, and threatens civilians around the world. 1. Make Clearing the Bomblets in Lebanon a Top U.S. Priority. It is essential that the U.S. continue to provide funding to complete the multi-million dollar UN operation to clear cluster bomblets in Lebanon. 2. Press Israel to Provide Cluster Munitions Strike Data. We call on you to use your influence with the government of Israel to turn over the coordinates of its cluster bomb strikes to the United Nations, or other appropriate authorities, so those areas can be cleared by UN Battle Area Clearance de-mining teams. 3. Review Cluster Bomb Transfers to All Countries. We call on you to urge the U.S. State Department to complete its review and publish its findings regarding Israel?s use of American-made cluster munitions during the 2006 summer war. The U.S. should ban any future transfer of cluster munitions. The Reagan Administration banned such a transfer of cluster bombs to Israel from 1982-88. 4. Provide Strong American Leadership. The U.S. should lead in the development of responsible rules governing the manufacture, use, transfer, and sale of deadly cluster munitions, including the clearing of unexploded munitions. 5. Call for an International Treaty Governing Cluster Weapons. Norway hosted an International Conference on Cluster Munitions in Oslo. Forty-six countries--including the United Kingdom, Canada, France, and the Vatican--issued a humanitarian appeal for an international cluster bomb treaty. We urge the United States to join these countries in support of an international treaty governing the use, transfer and sale of these weapons.
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American Task Force for Lebanon Legislative Council
1100 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 1250, Washington, D.C. 20036
Telephone: (202) 223-9292 Fax: (202) 223-1399.