Written question asked by Lord Hylton (Crossbench), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Malloch-Brown (Labour) on Tuesday, 4 December 2007.

Israel and Lebanon: Cluster Munitions

Question: asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether Israel has provided to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon the co-ordinates of all cluster munitions fired into Lebanon in 2006; whether the remaining unexploded cluster weapons in South Lebanon will be cleared by the target date of 31 December; and, if not, by when they expect clearance to be completed.

Answer: In October 2007, the UN Secretary-General reported that Israel has not provided the details of any of its cluster munition strikes to the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, or to any other part of the UN. The UK continues to call on Israel to provide all necessary information to assist the UN in the rapid clearance of cluster munitions in South Lebanon. The Mine Action Co-ordination Centre—South Lebanon (MACC-SL) set a target to clear all cluster munitions from the 2006 conflict by the end of 2007. However, this has not proved possible, largely because more cluster munition strike locations have been found as clearance efforts continue. MACC-SL's objective is now that by the end of 2007 the explosive remnants of the 2006 conflict do not directly impact the lives of those living in the affected areas. They expect that they will have cleared 70 to 75 per cent of the contaminated areas by the end of 2007. They predict that they will clear remaining areas of contaminated land by the end of 2008. The UK has been strongly supportive of efforts to clear cluster munitions in South Lebanon. The Government have pledged more than £3.7 million for the clearance of unexploded ordnance in Lebanon, including cluster munitions, since last year's conflict.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 533; 696 c178WA
Session: 2007-08
Related items: Israel and Lebanon: Cluster Munitions
Tuesday, 4 March 2008
Written questions
House of Lords
Subjects: Disclosure of information Armed conflict Bombings Cluster munitions Bomb disposal Location United Nations Israel Lebanon
Contains statistics: Yes
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk