Flooding South Lebanon - Human Rights Watch

percent, and dismissed the problem as being quickly dealt with by clearance. 127 The
rates have been documented by deminers, however, and may be the result of the
extensive use of older cluster munitions, especially dated US weapons. Explosive
materials deteriorate over time, making the weapons increasingly unstable and more
likely to fail.
Another possible factor is low trajectory or short-range firing. A report in Ha’aretz
said that in some cases the IDF fired M26 MLRS rockets “at a range of less than 15
kilometers, even though the manufacturer’s guidelines state that firing at this range
considerably increases the number of duds.” 128 An IDF reservist told Human Rights
Watch that he thought the reserve MLRS unit shot 20 to 25 percent of the M26
rockets at minimum ranges of 13 to 15 kilometers. 129 According to the US Army, the
M26 rocket’s M77 “submunition dud rate increases significantly at ranges less than
10 km.” 130 The high dud rate may also be partially attributable to landscape
characteristics, such as the soft ground of agricultural fields, and the density of trees
and vegetation, which may catch cluster submunitions as they fall. 131
The large number of Israeli-produced M85 submunition duds is particularly striking
since one model of that submunition, used extensively during the conflict, has a selfdestruct
feature that reportedly reduces the failure rate to some 1.3 to 2.3 percent
under testing conditions. As mentioned earlier, many experts have pointed to it as
one of the most reliable submunitions in the world. 132 However, a report in December
127 Major Tuval said, “There is a certain rate of duds, but one could deal with it by clearing…. Even if we can’t release [the dud
rate], we’re not talking about 25 percent. It’s less than 10 percent as far as I know.” Human Rights Watch interview with Maj.
Dorit Tuval, Tel Aviv, Israel, July 2, 2007.
128 Rapoport, “When Rockets and Phosphorus Cluster,” Ha’aretz.
129 Human Rights Watch interview with IDF reservist (name withheld), Tel Aviv, Israel, October 2006. He also estimated half of
the targets fired at by the reserve unit were close to the maximum range of 38 to 40 kilometers and likely north of the Litani
River. He said one time they were shooting at such a flat trajectory, almost horizontal, that they accidentally drilled their
rockets into a mountain in Israel.
130 US Department of the Army, “Tactics, Techniques and Procedures for Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) Operations,”
FM 6-60, April 23, 1996, http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/policy/army/fm/6-60/index.html (accessed
September 3, 2007), chap. 1.
131 The US Marine Corps has stated that DPICMs “should not be fired into wooded areas. Submunitions may become
suspended in tree branches and later pose a threat to friendly forces. Firing DPICMs into mountainous areas where the slope
is greater than 60 percent increases the dud rate.” US Marine Corps, “Fire Support Coordination in the Ground Control
Element,” MCWP 3-16, November 2000, pp. 5-38 and 5-39.
132 The submunition (or variations of it) is found in the arsenals of many countries, including Argentina, Austria, Denmark,
Finland, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, Norway, Romania, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
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Human Rights Watch February 2008