Groups Say Cluster Bombs Remain in 69 Nations

Cluster bombs, artillery shells and missiles are still stockpiled in 69 nations a year after they were banned by a new international law, a London-based coalition of 200 activist groups said Wednesday.

The London-based Cluster Munition Coalition's tally of these destructive explosive weapons came as diplomats gathered in Geneva to debate plans for phasing them out.

The weapons pose a particular risk to civilians because they indiscriminately scatter smaller "bomblets," some as small as flashlight batteries, packed tightly into hollowed out bombs, artillery shells or missiles that can be dropped from planes or launched from the ground.

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