CAIRO: Governments of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) should sign the new international treaty banning cluster munitions, Human Rights Watch said Monday. So far, only Lebanon and Tunisia signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which was opened for signature in December 2008. "Lebanon and Tunisia have recognized how important it is to free the world of these deadly weapons, said Sarah Leah Whitson, director of the Middle East and North Africa division of Human Rights Watch. "No Arab state has used cluster bombs in the past 15 years, and they now should promise never to do so in the future and join this treaty. A total of 94 countries, including Lebanon, signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Oslo, Norway on December 3-4, 2008. The treaty is now open for signature at the United Nations in New York. Thirteen states from the region participated in meetings that led to the creation of the convention, but have not yet signed: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. Iran, Israel and Syria refused to participate in the process that created the convention, and have also refused to sign the agreement. "Unfortunately, some countries don't like to give up their weapons, Nadim Houry, senior researcher with Human Rights Watch, told Daily News Egypt when asked why any country would refuse to sign the treaty. "Another possible reason might be that if Israel doesn't give up its weapons, some Middle Eastern countries wouldn't want to either, Houry added, "but if the treaty is implemented, such weapons will be hard to use by Israel for the stigma that these weapons would have. Houry gave the example of the landmine treaty that became binding in March 1999. Since 122 countries signed the landmine treaty, countries who were not signatories could not use landmines either. "This treaty is a major advance in international humanitarian law that will strengthen protection for civilians both during and after armed conflict, said Steve Goose, director of the arms division at Human Rights Watch. Cluster munitions can be fired by artillery and rocket systems or dropped by aircrafts, and typically explode in the air and send dozens, even hundreds, of tiny bomblets over an area the size of a football field. Used in urban areas, they invariably kill and wound civilians. Used in any circumstance, they can harm civilians decades after the war is over, as duds on the ground act like landmines, exploding when touched by unwitting civilians. According to Houry, the role of HRW is to follow up on the treaty as well as document and expose any violations of the treaty in the media.
