With the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran in its fourth week, Tehran stands accused of deploying cluster munitions against targets in Israel. According to some commentators, this and other ongoing violations of the law of war by both sides—including targeting or threatening water and electrical infrastructure on which civilians rely—are further signs of international law’s irrelevance or demise.
However, it is a misperception that violations of laws and norms necessarily result in their weakening. Instead, in some cases, violations of international laws and norms can be a spur to clarifying and strengthening the guiding moral principles underpinning international law. A closer look at the legal reality and political rhetoric around the use of cluster munitions in particular suggests that this will be the case with regard to Iran’s attacks on Israel.
Cluster munitions are conventional weapons that split up mid-flight into many smaller submunitions, which then scatter and explode over a wide area rather than a single target. Although some argue that advanced versions of even these small “bomblets” can be reliably aimed at strictly military objectives, many such bomblets do not explode at all. Instead they lie dormant on the ground even after conflicts, posing a health hazard to farmers, children and anyone who happens upon the “dud” later.