100-Incidents-Of-Humanitarian-Harm

Report by Esther Cann and Katherine Harrison Editor Katherine Harrison With contributions by Nerina Cevra, Coordinator, Survivor Rights & Victim Assistance, AOAV; and Henry Dodd, Research Intern, AOAV. Copyright © Action on Armed Violence, March 2011 With thanks to Suhair Abdi, Ailynne Benito, Mike Boddington, Roos Boer, John Borrie, Maya Brehm, Dr. Réginald Moreels, Richard Moyes, Thomas Nash, Kerry Smith, Verity Smith, Miriam Struyk, and Sebastian Taylor. Photographic material Bobby Benito/Bangsamoro Centre for Justpeace, Free Burma Rangers, Abdul Majeed Goraya/IRIN, ISM Palestine/ Wikimedia Commons, Rachel Kabejja/The Daily Monitor, Jason Motlagh/Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, Avi Ohayon/Wikimedia Commons, Mark Pearson/ShelterBox UK, and Muhammad Sabah/B’Tselem. Clarifications or corrections from interested parties are welcome. Research and publication funded by the Government of Norway, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record of this report is available from the British Library. ISBN: 978-0-9568521-0-6 Design Kieran Gardner Printing FM Print 100 InCIDEnts of HuManItaRIan HaRM Published in March 2011 by: Action on Armed Violence (Landmine Action) 5th Floor, Epworth House, 25 City Road, London, EC1Y 1AA T +44 (0) 20 7256 9500 F +44 (0) 20 7256 9311 Landmine Action is a company limited by guarantee. Registered in England and Wales no. 3895803. Contents Introduction 6 Executive summary 8 Incident profile guide 10 Incident profiles 1–100 11 Health impacts 17 Children and explosive weapons 28 Damage to infrastructure, property, and services 36 Displacement and explosive weapons 50 Harm caused by explosive remnants of war 61 Harm from explosions in stockpiles 69 Victim assistance 80 Counting explosive weapons casualties 89 annex: the research process 101 sources, incidents 1–100 102 The graffiti reads: “This market was destroyed by the Americans and the Saudi Arabians. What did markets do wrong?” Sa’dah, Yemen, March 2010 © Private 100 INCIDENTS OF HUMANITARIAN HARM Introduction From air-dropped bombs, rockets, reluctance to share this data, or to collect it at all, means that and missiles to improvised civil society groups have often taken the lead on this issue.5 The capacity of civil society to monitor civilian casualties caused explosive devices and grenades, by armed violence continues to develop, and several groups explosive weapons share a have effectively demonstrated transparent, accessible and particular capacity to cause replicable methodologies.6 On the part of states, the release of classified US military files on Iraq and Afghanistan by Wikileaks humanitarian harm. in 2010 highlights the wealth of existing data which can and should routinely be made available by users of explosive When used in populated areas, the impact can be weapons.7 The voluntary release of civilian casualty data by devastating, causing large numbers of direct deaths NATO’s International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF) in and severe injuries, displacement, and long-term March 20118 shows a further step towards recognition among psychological, social, economic, and infrastructure weapons users that they are responsible for providing data on damage. these impacts can be more severe where civilian casualties caused by their military operations. While this heavy explosive weapons are used or where use progress is to be welcomed, it should be recognised that data is sustained over time. When used in populated collected on deaths and injuries is limited in its ability to convey areas, the effects of explosive weapons tend to be the full range of humanitarian harm caused by explosive indiscriminate – harming civilian men and women, weapons incidents in populated areas. children and the elderly, as well as any combatants. about this report However, because of their widespread use by both state and non- state actors, the use of explosive weapons, even in populated This report aims to complement quantitative data on areas such as cities, towns, and villages is sometimes viewed as an explosive weapons casualties by contributing to a qualitative inevitable part of conflict. The indiscriminate nature of the damage understanding of the broader pattern of harm. The report caused by explosive weapons used in populated areas can make presents profiles of 100 incidents of humanitarian harm, caused their effects seem random – unfortunate, but unpredictable. by explosive weapons incidents in populated areas, over a This report argues that, broadly, the severe humanitarian harm two-year period from 1 January 2009 until 31 December 2010. caused by explosive weapons incidents in populated areas can These incidents do not represent a comprehensive inventory be predicted. This harm can therefore be reduced, mitigated, or in of humanitarian harm resulting from all explosive weapons many instances, avoided altogether. incidents occurring in populated areas during the two-year period, but rather a specific selection to reflect particular Background elements of the problem of explosive weapons in populated areas. The data presented cannot therefore be used as a basis Research by Landmine Action (now Action on Armed for statistical analysis of the problem.9 Incidents presented in Violence) in 2009 established that, when used in populated this report took place within a range of conflict and non-conflict areas, explosive weapons are likely to cause elevated civilian contexts, and are therefore subject to different considerations casualties.1 The same pattern is demonstrated by Action on in terms of domestic laws and international humanitarian law.10 Armed Violence’s ongoing Explosive Violence Monitoring However, due to the specific focus on the humanitarian harm Project, which monitors global news wire reports on explosive caused by explosive weapons across a range of contexts, weapons casualties.2 The recognition of this pattern as a issues of legality, intent, and targeting are not addressed in this serious humanitarian issue is reflected in a growing body of report. literature on the problem, including background papers and reports by UNIDIR, and reports by NGOs Save the Children The selection of incidents is intended to reflect the breadth UK and IKV Pax Christi.3 The UN Secretary-General’s and scope of the problem, with incidents occurring across November 2010 Report on the Protection of Civilians in Armed 35 territories, in different types of populated areas, involving Conflict recognises the problem of explosive weapons as one different types of explosive weapons. Incidents include of five key challenges for the protection of civilians. The report explosive weapons use by states and non-state actors makes specific recommendations for better data collection which caused harm at the time of use, as well as a few and analysis on the human costs of explosive weapons, urging incidents where harm was caused not by use per se, but by states to collect and make available data in this regard.4 stockpile explosions affecting populated areas or by explosive remnants of war (ERW) accidents. Thematic chapters draw While states bear primary responsibility for collecting and on the incidents to explore different aspects of both direct and publishing data on explosive weapons casualties, their indirect humanitarian harm, including: health impacts; impacts 6 100 INCIDENTS OF HUMANITARIAN HARM on children; damage to infrastructure, property, and services; The format of this report is aimed to encourage engagement displacement; harm caused by ERW; harm caused by with the specific nature of individual explosive weapons stockpile explosions; victim assistance, and issues relating to incidents as well as with the broader picture, and to counting explosive weapons casualties. These chapters also encourage discussion and debate on a broad range of policy address the intersection of the problem of explosive weapons issues, including both those directly addressed, and those with other humanitarian issues, such as emergency medical which are implicit but fall outside the scope of this report. care, the protection of children, and humanitarian access. Taken as a whole, this report provides a basis for considering the nature and severity of the impacts of explosive weapons in populated areas, and for re-examining the acceptability of explosive weapons use in such contexts. Definitions to contain concentrations of civilians. These locations comprise: commercial premises; entertainment venues; Explosive weapon hospitals; hotels; encampments (containing internally The following weapons were considered to be explosive displaced people [IDPs], refugees or nomads); markets; weapons: air-dropped bombs, car bombs, improvised places of worship; police stations;13 public gatherings; explosive devices (IEDs), mortars, artillery and howitzer 11 public buildings; public transport; schools; town centres; shells, rockets, missiles, submunitions, and grenades. villages/compounds; commercial premises; urban Only those incidents involving use of at least one 12 residential neighbourhoods; and roads, if passing explosive weapon were considered. through one of the previously listed locations.14 Populated area Civilian casualties For the purposes of this report, incidents were Casualties were recorded as civilian if they were reported considered as taking place in a populated area on the as such, or if they were not identified by sources as basis that either a) a concentration of civilians was clearly armed actors or weapons bearers, nor as security

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