The International Campaign to Ban Landmines estimates that landmines cause over 4,000 casualties each year—that is 11 to 12 per day. Women and children are often the victims losing their lives, limbs, or eyesight from accidentally contacting an explosive device. Like landmines, cluster bombs are almost impossible to target only military, and they are often still set to explode long after the fighting has ended. Cluster bombs are shot with artillery or dropped from airplanes, containing sub-munitions or “bomblets”, which disperse over a wide area. The colourful explosive duds have often killed and maimed children who mistake them for a toy or a ball. SMALL ARMS AND LIGHT WEAPONS: Most armed violence in
CATEGORIES OF WEAPONS
the world is perpetrated with small arms and light weapons, which is why they are sometimes called “the real weapons of mass destruction”. Technically, “small arms” refers to firearms that can be easily carried by a single person. These include handguns, rifles, carbines, submachine guns, assault rifles, and light hand-held machine guns. Light weapons need to be operated by two or three people. These include grenade launchers, mortars, light missiles, portable anti-tank and anti-aircraft guns, heavy machine guns, cannons, and various explosive devices. Like major conventional arms, the international trade in light weapons in principle involves government-to-government transfers—but there seems to be a large international black market for them. Most present-day conflicts are fought mainly with small arms, which are broadly used in inter-State conflict. They are the weapons of choice in civil wars and for terrorism, organized crime and gang warfare because they are cheap, light, and easy to handle, transport and conceal. The proliferation of small arms and light weapons can encourage conflicts, undermine peace initiatives, and exacerbate human rights abuses. Armed conflict causes people to flee their homes and is the most common cause of food insecurity. In addition, armed violence also diverts energy and resources away from efforts to improve human development. As the violence in a conflict zone becomes more lethal and lasts longer,
United Nations “Blue Helmets” help disarm militias in Côte d’Ivoire.
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