Barrel Bombs worse than Cluster Bombs? You decide...
Many recent news articles mentions the use of barrel bombs by the Syrian military. Are these barrel bomb worse than regular bombs? Are they worse than cluster bombs? Did Syria invent these bombs or have they been used before?
Lets take a look...
"A barrel bomb is an improvised unguided bomb, sometimes described as a flying IED (improvised explosive device). They are typically made from a large barrel-shaped metal container that has been filled with high explosives, with possibly shrapnel, oil or chemicals, and then dropped from a helicopter or airplane.[1] Due to the large amount of explosives (up 1,000 kilograms), their poor accuracy and indiscriminate use in populated civilian areas (including refugee camps), the resulting detonations have been devastating.[2][3][4][5] Critics have characterised them as weapons of terror and illegal under international conventions.[6]
The earliest known use of barrel bombs in their current form was by the Israeli military in 1948. The second known use of barrel bombs was by the US military in Vietnam in the late 1960s. Starting in the 1990s, they were also used in Sri Lanka, Croatia and Sudan. Barrel bombs have been used extensively by the Syrian Air Force during the Syrian Civil War—bringing the weapon to widespread global attention—and later by the Iraqi forces during the Anbar clashes. Experts believe they will continue to be embraced by unstable nations fighting insurgencies since they are cheap to make and utilise the advantages of a government's air-power.[7]"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrel_bomb
=============
OK, so they are cheap improvised bombs and their indiscriminate use against civilians is the real issue. How do they compare to cluster bombs? And what is the US policy about cluster bombs?
"A cluster munition is a form of air-dropped or ground-launched explosive weapon that releases or ejects smaller submunitions. Commonly, this is a cluster bomb that ejects explosive bomblets that are designed to kill personnel and destroy vehicles. Other cluster munitions are designed to destroy runways or electric power transmission lines, disperse chemical or biological weapons, or to scatter land mines. Some submunition-based weapons can disperse non-munitions, such as leaflets.
Because cluster bombs release many small bomblets over a wide area, they pose risks to civilians both during attacks and afterwards. During attacks, the weapons are prone to indiscriminate effects, especially in populated areas. Unexploded bomblets can kill or maim civilians and/or unintended targets long after a conflict has ended, and are costly to locate and remove."
"United States policy towards cluster munitions
In May 2008, then-Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Stephen Mull stated that the U.S. military relies upon cluster munitions as an important part of their defense strategy.
"Cluster munitions are available for use by every combat aircraft in the U.S. inventory, they are integral to every Army or Marine maneuver element and in some cases constitute up to 50 percent of tactical indirect fire support. U.S. forces simply cannot fight by design or by doctrine without holding out at least the possibility of using cluster munitions."
...
"U.S. arguments favoring the use of cluster munitions are that their use reduces the number of aircraft and artillery systems needed to support military operations and if they were eliminated, significantly more money would have to be spent on new weapons, ammunition, and logistical resources. Also, militaries would need to increase their use of massed artillery and rocket barrages to get the same coverage, which would destroy or damage more key infrastructures."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cluster_munition#Countries_that_have_produced_cluster_munitions
===============
Ok then. Crude, cheaply made barrel bombs are bad because they can inflict indiscriminate damage to civilians, but US made "cluster munitions" are OK even though they also inflict indiscriminate damage to civilians?
Pardon my confusion.
= new reply since forum marked as read
