Convention on Cluster Munitions
2008 treaty banning cluster munitions; neither Iran, the US, nor Israel are signatories.
Last refreshed: 31 March 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Iran used cluster munitions on Israeli cities; does any law apply if neither side signed the ban?
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Background
The Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) is an international treaty adopted in Dublin in 2008 and effective from 2010. It prohibits the use, production, transfer, and stockpiling of cluster munitions, weapons that scatter submunitions across wide areas and leave unexploded ordnance that kills civilians for decades.
111 states have joined the convention. Critically, none of the three principal actors in the 2026 Iran conflict are among them: Iran, Israel, and the United States have all refused to sign. Russia, China, and India are also non-signatories.
The convention became directly relevant on 31 March 2026 when Iran fired a Ballistic missile carrying a cluster-bomb warhead at Bnei Brak, Ramat Gan, and Petah Tikva in central Israel, scattering submunitions across residential areas. Because neither side is bound by the CCM, there is no treaty mechanism to enforce accountability for the attack.
