Some militant arms in Niger came from West African state stockpiles – report
Lagos, NigeriaReuters Significant proportions of weapons and arms seized from Islamist insurgents in Niger came from West African state stockpiles, suggesting authorities are struggling to secure arms stores in the region, a report said on Monday. There was no suggestion that any governments were sending weapons to militants who have launched attacks in Niger as […]
Myanmar resistance urges West to provide arms for fight against junta
Reuters The defence chief of Myanmar’s shadow government has called for international help to arm its resistance forces fighting the ruling military, requesting support similar to that being given to Ukrainians battling invading Russian troops. The people of Ukraine and Myanmar’s pro-democracy militias are all fighting for freedom and giving their lives, but those taking […]
Pope, at peace meeting with Merkel, says divert arms money for food, vaccines
Rome, ItalyReuters Pope Francis, closing a peace meeting of world religions, called the arms trade a bane of humanity on Thursday, saying that money spent on weapons should be diverted to feed the hungry and distribute vaccines fairly. “Fewer arms and more food, less hypocrisy and more transparency, more vaccines distributed fairly and fewer weapons […]
Red Cross sounds alarm over use of ‘killer robots’ in future wars
Thomson Reuters Foundation Countries must agree strict rules on “killer robots” – autonomous weapons which can assassinate without human involvement, a top Red Cross official has said, amid growing ethical concerns over their use in future wars. Semi-autonomous weapons systems from drones to tanks have for decades been used to eliminate targets in modern day […]
Small arms kill more than 500,000 people a year, UN conference hears
Small arms fire kills more than 500,000 people a year and while those pulling the trigger include police and soldiers, most are members of armed groups, terrorist organisation, criminal gangs or national security forces abusing their power, a UN conference has heard. Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, the UN Chef de Cabinet, made the comments at the […]
Civilian deaths from explosives surge in 2017, says campaign group
Thomson Reuters Foundation More than 40 civilians were killed every day by explosive weapons last year, according to a preliminary survey of media reports, a sharp rise on 2016 largely due to an increase in deadly airstrikes, a campaign group said on Monday. From monitoring English-language news reports up to the end of November, Action […]
Landmine deaths soar in 2016 with record number of child victims, report
Thomson Reuters Foundation A record number of children were reported killed or hurt by landmines and other explosives last year, with a handful of conflicts contributing to a “horrific” toll for the second year running, experts said on Thursday. The annual Landmine Monitor report recorded 8,605 casualties in 2016, the second highest figure since 1999 […]
ESSAY: NEW TREATY BANS WORST TYPES OF CLUSTER MUNITIONS
Dr MARK ZIRNSAK, national co-ordinator for the Australian Network to Ban Landmines and the director of the Justice and International Mission Unit, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania, Uniting Church in Australia, examines what the new treaty means…