Amnesty International / Landmark cluster bomb treaty signed in Oslo
Ninety two states signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions – which bans the production, stockpiling, use and export of cluster bombs during a ceremony in Oslo on Wednesday.
The first steps have been taken to banning cluster bombs, a weapon which kills and maims sometimes years later. Representatives of 100 countries gathered in Norway to sign a treaty calling for cluster bombs to be outlawed all over the world.
Afghanistan Says It Will Sign Cluster Bomb Treaty
In a surprising last-minute change of policy, the government of President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan agreed Wednesday to join about 100 nations signing a treaty banning the use of cluster munitions, Afghan officials said.
The decision appeared to reflect Mr. Karzai’s growing independence from the Bush administration, which has opposed the treaty and, according to a senior Afghan official who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, had urged Mr. Karzai not to sign it.
Cluster bombs… essentially a cheap and deadly pollution of enemy territory.