In this photo provided by Ukraine's 24th Mechanised Brigade press service, servicemen of the 24th Mechanised Brigade install anti-tank landmines and non explosive obstacles along the front line near Chasiv Yar town in Donetsk region, Ukraine, October 30, 2024
[Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukrainian 24th Mechanised Brigade via AP] 
ANOTHER international human rights law was duly ignored today, when Washington announced that it would allow Ukraine to use US-supplied landmines, a decision that drew condemnation from a Nobel Peace Prize-winning organisation.
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters in Laos, where he was attending a meeting with his south-east Asian counterparts, that Ukraine needed to use the indiscriminate weapons in order to help slow Russian troops from advancing further west.
The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) condemned Washington’s decision and reminded President Joe Biden administration that the weapons were banned by most countries by the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty due to their devastating impact on civilians.
Israeli media awash with leaks and rumours of Netanyahu’s plans to seize Gaza. Meanwhile, the unrelenting siege of Gaza continues unabated
Mr Smalls and 13 other Freedom Flotilla Coalition activists who tried to break Israel’s illegal blockade of Gaza aboard the Handala ship remain in detention and on hunger strike
