The latest Cluster Munitions Monitor reports that more than 1,200 people have been killed or injured in Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, though the true number is likely much higher and may take years to determine. Loren Persi, team lead for the report, highlighted that similar underestimations occurred in conflicts in Syria and Yemen, where high casualties only became clear years later.
The report draws parallels with the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, described as the most heavily contaminated country by cluster munitions, where decades were needed to verify that thousands had been killed or injured. Cluster munitions disperse numerous submunitions over large areas, causing widespread civilian casualties. The publication, supported by UNIDIR, also cites allegations of cluster munition use in a June 2025 Iranian ballistic missile attack on Israel, as well as unverified reports in Gaza and southern Lebanon.
In Myanmar, de facto forces have used domestically produced, air-delivered cluster bombs since around 2022 amid ongoing civil conflict, with schools and civilian areas frequently targeted. Submunitions, or bomblets, are particularly dangerous for civilians due to their blast, incendiary, and fragmentation effects. Children are especially vulnerable, making up 42 per cent of casualties in 2024, often mistaking these remnants for toys while playing or traveling to school.
Funding cuts for humanitarian clearance and rehabilitation programs have slowed progress in countries affected by cluster munitions, including Afghanistan, Iraq, and Lebanon. Programs previously supported by USAID, such as long-standing initiatives in Laos providing first aid and prosthetics, have been discontinued, leaving affected populations without essential support.
Since the adoption of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, only ten countries have used these weapons, all of which are not States Parties to the treaty. While 18 countries have ceased production and joined the Convention, 17 nations—including Brazil, China, India, Iran, Israel, Myanmar, Russia, the United States, and Türkiye—still produce cluster munitions or reserve the right to do so, and none are States Parties to the international accord.
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