“They Burn Through Everything”
The Human Cost of Incendiary Weapons and the Limits of International Law

Incendiary weapons cause extremely painful and cruel burn injuries that are difficult to treat. They also start fires that can destroy civilian objects and infrastructure. Incendiary weapons have been used at great civilian cost in conflicts such as the one raging in Syria, where incendiary weapons are used in populated areas. More than 110 nations are party to the 1980 Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Protocol III on Incendiary Weapons. Human Rights Watch urges that the incendiary weapons protocol be reviewed and strengthened by banning the use of all incendiary weapons in civilian areas and by broadening the definition in the protocol to cover white phosphorus.
The Human Cost of Incendiary Weapons and the Limits of International Law
Testimony on the subtheme of "Disarmament and Non-Proliferation" by Kanae Doi, Human Rights Watch on 22 February 2023
Delivered by Susan Aboeid, Associate
Stronger Law Needed to Govern Weapon Causing Horrific Burns
UNGA First Committee on Disarmament and International Security, Delivered by Bonnie Docherty
Delivered by Gerry Simpson, Associate Director, Crisis and Conflict Division
Written by Bonnie Docherty, Senior Researcher. Delivered by Lode Dewaegheneire, Mines Action Canada
Healthcare Professionals, Burn Survivor Organizations Seek Stronger Rules