Human rights investigations
As regular readers will know, HRI has been investigating the sordid world of the Spanish cluster bomb industry. Now Spanish officials (not known for releasing specific information about arms exports) have reportedly claimed the cluster bombs found in Misrata, (type MAT-120 made by Instalaza) were never exported to the USA. However, they refuse to provide the actual evidence, documents, […]
Little is known about the secretive (and now largely outsourced) Spanish cluster bomb industry – until its products turn up in foreign lands. Spain has signed up to, but not yet implemented into domestic legislation, the Convention on Cluster Munitions. It is time Spain implemented the legislation and also provided full transparency about its past activities, […]
On this page, HRI presents some of the evidence relevant to the use of cluster munitions in Misrata in April 2011. As more information comes to light, and in response to the requirements of the on-going investigation, this page is updated on a fairly regular basis. Unlike those who jump to instant conclusions based on propaganda and partial truths, HRI is sceptical and […]
Analysis of official Spanish government documents indicates Spanish company Instalaza may not have exported the MAT-120 cluster weapon to Libya in 2007/08. In the 2008 report, Libya is listed as a recipient of category 4 munitions (which include bombs) – this is the source of the reports that Libya was provided with the MAT-120 by […]
Barclays Bank is implicated in the use of cluster munitions in Misrata. Analysis of the accounts of Instalaza, the manufacturer of the cluster munitions used in Misrata, by Profundo shows that Barclays Bank has been a major funder of the Spanish arms manufacturer. In 2007, Instalaza generated annual revenues of € 14.9 million, resulting in […]
Banking institutions have been implicated in the use of cluster munitions in Misrata. Deutsche Bank granted Spanish company Instalaza, the cluster bomb manufacturer, a loan of about €3.1 million according to information from non-governmental organisation Urgewald, as reported in the weekly Die Zeit on Wednesday. More than 100 countries signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions […]
UPDATE: 1 June 2011 – See later articles for updates UPDATE: 23 July 2011 – We’re still waiting for the Spanish government to produce the cluster bomb licenses, proof of export and end-user certificates. More here and here More on the evidence Libya possessed cluster munitions: HRI has located the original source of the Spanish media reports […]
Instalaza has been claiming 40 million euros, according to Spanish newspaper Cincodias in compensation for damages and lost profits after Spain decided to ban cluster bombs. The claim was put into the Spanish Executive, but the company refuses to say what the result has been. For their part, according to this newspaper report, the Spanish […]
To paraphrase The Dude – More information comes to light: “In 2005, a Spanish company announced that it was going to co-produce with the Finnish defense company Patria a 120mm mortar projectile with submunitions. In 2006, Patria advertised a 120mm mortar projectile that contains 21 submunitions, stating that the dual purpose submunitions contain “electronic fusing…which […]
We are currently investigating the cluster bombing of Misurata on the 14th April 2011. The sources for the original story are Human Rights Watch and the New York Times. The specific individuals to make the initial allegations were Fred Abrahams, a special advisor for Human Rights Watch and C.J. Chivers of the New York Times. […]
Human rights investigations 