Report: Libya must do more to find weapons

BOSTON, Aug. 3 (UPI) -- Abandoned weapons endanger Libyan civilians because of inaction by the transitional government, an international human rights group says.

Harvard Law School's International Human Rights Clinic made the charge in a report issued Thursday, the Tripoli Post reported.

Based on IHRC in-country investigations in March and July, the report called on Libyan leaders to act quickly to find and destroy stockpiles of weapons, some of which could be unstable. The organization said Libya should enlist international aid to clear out the munitions, educate citizens about the risks of such weapons, and assist those injured by the abandoned equipment.

Gaddafi's forces left behind thousands of weapons including torpedoes and surface-to-air missiles.

Unlike previous reports, which dealt with international proliferation of weaponry, the IHRC survey looked at the impact of the weapons left behind on people inside the country.

The report was critical of the new Libyan government for not having a national strategy to locate and clear the devices and cited confusion within the government about which agency had jurisdiction.

IHRC also charged the transitional government had provided little aid to the United Nations and non-profit groups doing the work.