Pope Benedict XVI has called on states that have yet to sign the UN convention banning cluster bombs to do so "without delay." The convention is "an important instrument of international humanitarian law that the Holy See has always supported," the pope said after his Sunday Angelus prayer.
"I also express my support to all steps that can assure the necessary assistance to the victims of such devastating weapons," he said, noting that Saturday was an international day of public awareness about landmines.
The 1997 mine-banning Ottawa Treaty, which came into force on March 1, 1999, has 156 signatories.
According to pressure group Handicap International, the convention has led to the destruction of more than 42 million stockpiled mines worldwide.
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(Source: ABC)