Can you build a “safe” cluster bomb? That is the question facing military chiefs after a treaty banning the weapons was agreed by 109 countries in Dublin, Ireland, last week.
Cluster bombs scatter many small submunitions, or “bomblets”, across a target area. The problem is that some fail to explode on impact and go on to kill or maim civilians who encounter them later.
Some major users of the weapons, including the US, Russia and China, did not sign the treaty. The US says it prefers a “technological fix” to ensure cluster weapons hurt only enemy combatants. Indeed, some cluster…
