Syria Denies Use of Cluster Bombs
The Syrian army on Monday denied using cluster munitions and said it did not possess the weapon in its arsenal, in a statement published by state news agency SANA.
"Some news outlets that are complicit in the bloodletting in Syria have been publishing false reports that the Syrian army has been using cluster bombs against armed terrorists," it said, adding the military "does not have this kind of weapon."
Human Rights Watch on Sunday accused the Syrian air force of using cluster bombs against rebels and in populated areas across the strife-torn country.
"The Syrian army does not possess this kind of bomb," the army insisted on Monday. "Such reports are baseless and a part of a disinformation campaign."
Syria has not ratified a convention banning cluster bombs that has been adopted by 109 countries since 2008.
"Syria’s disregard for its civilian population is all too evident in its air campaign, which now apparently includes dropping these deadly cluster bombs into populated areas," said Steve Goose, arms director at the New York-based HRW.
"Cluster bombs have been comprehensively banned by most nations, and Syria should immediately stop all use of these indiscriminate weapons that continue to kill and maim for years," he said in a statement Sunday.
Source: Agence France Presse
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