Human Rights Watch has called on the U.S. Congress to block Turkey’s request to transfer tens of thousands of cluster munition rockets and artillery projectiles to the Kiev authorities, according to a statement on the organization’s website.
“Dumping obsolete cluster munitions into a conflict creates a humanitarian liability for civilians,” Nicole Widdersheim, Deputy Director of Human Rights Watch in Washington DC, said, reported TASS. “The impact on civilians of these more than 30-year-old inaccurate and unreliable munitions is what motivated 112 countries to ban the weapon by joining the international Convention on Cluster Munitions.”
Widdersheim explained, “These types of cluster munitions are notorious for their record of not hitting their targets and hurting civilians. They should never be used. Congress can still act to stop this short-sighted and dangerous transfer.”
