Tel Aviv – Iran has launched dozens of rockets equipped with cluster munitions at Israel since the start of the conflict, posing a challenge to Israel’s missile defense systems, which must intercept them before they break apart and release smaller explosives.
Overnight, Israel failed to intercept one of the cluster rockets, and its submunitions scattered across civilian areas in Tel Aviv, resulting in the deaths of an elderly couple and damage to a major train station.
According to Israeli military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani, the couple was killed in their apartment by the detonation of a small bomb, one of the cluster munitions’ payloads.
“The Iranian regime launched this cluster bomb toward a densely populated center and fired dozens of rockets toward civilians, deliberately targeting civilians… this is a war crime committed by the Iranian regime,” Shoshani told reporters.
Shoshani added that the military is doing everything possible to intercept these rockets “at the highest level possible” to minimize damage.
* Prohibited Munitions
Cluster munitions explode in the air, dispersing hundreds of “bomblets” over a wide area. These bomblets often fail to detonate, creating de facto minefields that can kill or injure anyone who encounters them later.
More than 100 countries agreed to ban the use of cluster munitions at an international conference in Dublin in 2008. However, Israel and Iran have not joined the ban, nor have major powers including the United States, China, and Russia.
Israel’s Home Front Command, which issues safety guidelines to citizens during wartime, has released videos warning about the dangers of these munitions, stating they can “become dangerous explosive traps,” particularly for young children or pets.
The military stated that approximately half of the rockets Iran has launched since the joint Israeli-U.S. Strike against Iran on February 28 were equipped with cluster warheads. Iran also deployed these rockets during the 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran last June.
An Israeli military official explained that the Iranian cluster warheads contain around 24 bomblets, each carrying approximately 2 to 5 kilograms of explosives. They detonate at an altitude of 7 to 10 kilometers above the Earth’s surface, impacting dozens of separate locations.
“Each sub-munition can explode upon impact with the ground or any hard surface. Its effect is similar to the explosion of a hand grenade – relatively limited damage (in terms of force and area) but very dangerous to anyone nearby,” the official said.
* “Must Be Intercepted Above the Atmosphere”
Yehoshua Kaliski, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, said that most of the rockets are intercepted by Israel’s “Arrow-3” ballistic missile defense system.
To prevent damage, Kaliski stated, “They must be intercepted above the atmosphere, as far away as possible from the target area… there is no other way, because once the cluster bombs are released (into the atmosphere), they cannot be intercepted.”
Shoshani emphasized that Israel’s offensive capabilities have also been crucial. Israel says it has struck hundreds of targets in Iran, including rocket launch sites. Estimates from the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) indicate that more than 3,000 people have been killed in Iran since the start of the conflict.
Regarding efforts to prevent Israeli casualties from Iranian rockets, Shoshani said, “We are undermining their ability to launch rockets, (along with) active defense systems and passive defense systems, sirens, and directing people to safe spaces.”
He added, “The combination of all of that has been very successful, but It’s still not perfect.”
(Prepared by Ayman Saad Muslim for the Arab Bulletin – Edited by Mohamed Al-Yamani)
The use of cluster munitions raises serious humanitarian concerns and adds another layer of complexity to the ongoing conflict. The incident underscores the escalating tensions in the region and the potential for further civilian harm.
