Philip Aliyu, vice president of the Japanese American Citizens League, has been active in campaign for a ban on the US military using non-lethal munitions, such as cluster bombs, in Japan.
“This is only an attack on humanity and a crime against humanity, just like the attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” he told the Associated Press.
Cluster bombs are weapons of mass destruction that indiscriminately kill all living beings in a particular area until the bomb is exploded.
“There are a number of instances of cluster bomb use in particular, as well as chemical weapons in particular, such as Sarin which is a nerve agent. So there’s a lot of evidence and examples that show that the cluster bombs we use aren’t only a threat not to civilian populations. The use of cluster munitions as a weapon, as an instrument of war is an abhorrent and abhorrent practice. This is an attack on humanity,” Dr Aliyu stated.
Earlier this month, the UN panel of experts on Yemen concluded that Houthi rebels committed war crimes by conducting military operations, including attacks using cluster bombs. The weapons were used in a deadly attack on Yemen. The report made clear that military operations carried out by the Houthi rebels have been linked to the use of cluster bombs.
The report states: “As a result, the Panel concludes, the Houthi-Saleh forces have likely committed two war crimes: the use of cluster munitions and deliberate targeting or dispersal of civilians.” The report was presented to the UN security council by Jordan last week.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon has called the attack in the Japanese capital city of Tokyo, “one of the most disgusting, horrific and heartless crimes ever committed on our planet”.
Ban’s report states that the attacks “include a pattern of unprovoked disproportionate use of force, and a failure to investigate and prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity, including indiscriminate attacks against civilians.”
“A series of cluster attacks were carried out from December 26, 2012 until March 27, 2013, during which over a thousand people have been killed and many more injured,” Ban explains.
At least four people died of their injuries within 24 hours alone.
In a second round of consultations on the report, the United States said it was “extremely concerned” over the findings.
“I am extremely concerned about the widespread suffering caused by this terrible tragedy