Cluster bombs, Israel, Lebanon, and Alliant Techsystems (formerly Honeywell)

a chapter in my life that i'm not proud of is when i worked for honeywell's aerospace and defense systems group in the early 80s... it was later spun off as alliant techsystems * in 1990... at that time, the honeywell project would frequently stage picket-sign protests at honeywell's headquarters in minneapolis over honeywell's manufacture of very ugly weapons, weapons designed to kill and maim as many people as possible... their protests were given much more urgency when it was revealed that israel was using those weapons in its attacks on lebanon... well, it's happening again...

The State Department is investigating whether Israel’s use of American-made cluster bombs in southern Lebanon violated secret agreements with the United States that restrict when it can employ such weapons, two officials said.

The investigation by the department’s Office of Defense Trade Controls began this week, after reports that three types of American cluster munitions, anti-personnel weapons that spray bomblets over a wide area, have been found in many areas of southern Lebanon and were responsible for civilian casualties.

< sigh > the more things change, the more they remain the same... israel is still using the weapons and alliant techsystems is still making and selling them...

* Alliant Techsystems

The company produces a number of controversial military products, including depleted uranium rounds and cluster bombs, considered indiscriminate weapons. As a result, the company has been a target of peace movement protests, with weekly vigils held at Alliant Techsystems headquarters as well as occasional organized acts of civil disobedience

a successor organization to the honeywell project, alliantaction, posts this on their website...

Since the 1960s, ATK (Honeywell) has been suppling cluster bombs to the DoD and these were recently used in Afghanistan and Gulf War II (cluster bombs were also used in Kosovo and Gulf War I). The cluster bomb sub-munition is painted bright yellow, the same color the "aid" packages the US dropped in Afghanistan. The military claims a dud rate of 5% while some experts say it is closer to 20%. This weapon system continues to maim and kill civilans long after conflicts have ended. It is indiscriminate and thus illegal under International Law.

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