When Israel went to war in Lebanon against Hezbollah it quickly asked the US for more munitions, since the plan agreed upon last year between the IDF and Mr Rumsfeld’s Defense Department provided for a month-long bombing campaign in order to attrite Hezbollah and to destroy as much as possible of the infrastructure of south Lebanon. And Israel immediately asked for more bombs, a request that was approved by Mr Rumsfeld with almost obscene haste.

It turns out that Israel wanted quite a few M-26 cluster rockets for their MRLS launchers.

Reuters writes that “the rockets, while likely effective against hidden missile launchers, would also likely cause civilian casualties if used against targets in populated areas.” That’s because each rocket contains multiple grenades that are dispersed over a wide area before they explode.

These weapons are blunt instruments, used to wreak death and destruction over a large area with imprecise targeting. Wherever Israel uses them, civilians who are nearby will be killed.

Some State Department officials are trying to block the sale because these weapons are so particularly prone to creating high numbers of civilian deaths, but as a whole, the Bush Administration is pushing to get the weapons to Israel as soon as possible. A note would come along with the weapons, urging Israel to be careful with them.

Unsurprisingly, Billmon has an opinion on the matter:

Hypocrisy, thy name is Uncle Sam