LONDON (dpa) – The Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund has called on the United States and British governments to stop using cluster bombs in Afghanistan.
In a letter to The Times of London Thursday, the charity’s chief executive Andrew Purkis says cluster bombs produce a long-term threat to civilians, similar to landmines.
The charity says cluster bombs frequently miss their targets and fail to explode. Each cluster bomb contains as many as 200 small combustible bomblets, which spray shrapnel upon detonation.
The organization recently published a report claiming that 35,000 unexploded bomblets were left on the ground in Kosovo and are currently killing about one civilian a week.
The charity has called on the U.S. and Britain to take responsibility after the conflict in Afghanistan to remove all unexploded bombs.
