Are M26 rockets compliant with international humanitarian law (IHL)?
Human Rights Watch is unaware of any conflict where cluster munitions like the M26 rocket have been used uniformly in a manner fully consistent with IHL. The broad area effect of these weapons makes their use incompatible with the laws of war in areas where civilians or civilian objects (such as schools or hospitals) are located since they cannot be targeted effectively and accurately against military targets. Under international humanitarian law, any attack which employs a weapon which cannot be directed at a specific military objective is an indiscriminate attack, and therefore prohibited. In Iraq in 2003, U.S. and U.K. ground forces made widespread use of cluster munitions in populated areas causing civilian casualties during and after attacks. Given the foreseeability of civilian casualties from strikes and duds during and after attacks, this conduct raises the concern that in many cases the attacks were likely indiscriminate. Human Rights Watch has concluded that existing IHL is n
