Misblog

Originally Published January 27, 2007; Updated and Republished May 29, 2008; Updated and Republished December 02, 2008:

Reuters is reporting¹ that the United States Department of State will notify Congress, in accordance with applicable US Arms Control Law, that Israel has used cluster bombs on Lebanon’s civilian population.²

Israel and some of its apologists have begun the disturbing trend of explicitly or implicitly accusing critics of being supporters of terrorists or anti-Semitic or anti-Zionists or all three.

You do not have to hate Israel or Jews or love terrorists to demand that Israel refrain from using cluster bombs on civilian populations.

Links to Misblog's:

• The Zionist Dream Has Turned Into A Nightmare Update-4
• The Zionist Dream Has Turned Into A Nightmare Update-3
• The Zionist Dream Has Turned Into A Nightmare Update-2
• The Zionist Dream Has Turned Into A Nightmare Update-1
• The Zionist Dream Has Turned Into A Nightmare Update

Web:

• UPDATED 12/02/2008 BBC, Cluster bomb treaty to be signed

• UPDATED 05/29/2008 WP, 111 Nations, Minus the U.S., Agree to Cluster-Bomb Ban and AP, Treaty seeks to ban cluster bombs within 8 years. Unfortunately, the United States, Russia, China, Israel, India, and Pakistan, all major users and producers of cluster bombs have unwisely and indefensibly declined to join the treaty.

  You will recognize their logic, rationale, and justification for not doing so from your grade-school playground days dressed up with verbose “adult” rhetoric.

• UPDATED 12/25/2007 BBC, Israeli cluster bomb use 'legal'. Bullshit, Israel - and the entire world has told you so!
• NY Times: Israel May Have Violated Arms Pact, U.S. Officials Say

-----notes-----

1. Reuters, "U.S. may cite Israel for use of cluster arms: report"; Sat Jan 27, 2007 8:53pm.

2. Israel asserts that it was necessary to use cluster bombs, which have a very large kill radius, to target Hezbollah katyusha rocket launchers.

Cluster bombing katyusha rocket launchers within civilian populations is not considered precision bombing, to say the least. Additionally, the bomblets, by the tens-of-thousands, remain unexploded and present continuous grenade like risks to civilians decades into the future.

If you have not done so, please read "Bombs for Beginners" and "DoD 101" available on the Federation of American Scientists' website here and here.