Niš cluster bombing
| Cluster bombing of Niš | |
|---|---|
| Location | Niš, Serbia, Yugoslavia |
| Date | 7 May 1999 |
| Target | Niš Airport |
Attack type | Aerial bombing |
| Deaths | 14[1] to 16[2] |
Non-fatal injuries | 28[1] |
| Perpetrators | NATO |
The cluster bombing of Niš was an event that occurred on 7 May 1999 during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. It was the most serious event involving civilian deaths and the use of cluster bombs during the NATO campaign in Yugoslavia.[3] The cluster bombs had been dropped by Royal Netherlands Air Force.[4]
The raid
On 7 May 1999, between the time of 11:30 and 11:40, Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16 fighter jets dropped two containers of cluster bombs over Niš, directed at Niš Airport, located at the end of the city. The bombs missed their target and fell near the city center. The bombs were scattered from the two containers and were carried by the wind and then fell in three locations in the central part of the city:
- The Pathology building next to the Medical Center of Niš in the south of the city,
- Next to the building of "Banovina" including the main market, bus station next to the Niš Fortress and "12th February" Health Centre
- Parking of "Niš Express" near the Nišava River.
A report from Human Rights Watch recorded 14 civilians deaths as a result of the attack, with another 28 injured.[1] Večernje novosti reported 16 civilian deaths.[2]
Aftermath
After the incident the Royal Netherlands Air Force stopped using cluster bombs in the campaign, but other NATO members continued to use them.
Today, hundreds of unexploded cluster munitions can still be found in the Serbian countryside, despite efforts by the Serbian government to clear all sites of such munitions.[5]
Notes
- 1 2 3 "Civilian Deaths in the NATO Air Campaign - The Crisis in Kosovo". Hrw.org. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
- 1 2 D. Stojanović (May 7, 2015). "Novosti: Suze za 16 žrtava kasetnih bombi" (in Serbian). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
- ↑ Civilian Deaths in the NATO Air Campaign
- ↑ Ex-PM testifies on Nato strikes
- ↑ "РТС: Ниш чисти касетне бомбе" (in Serbian). Rts.rs. 24 May 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2012.