Molotov cocktail is the generic name for a variety of crude incendiary weapons. Commonly associated with irregular military forces and rioters, they are more frequently used for basic arson.

Composition

A Molotov cocktail (or petrol bomb) consists of a glass bottle partly filled with flammable liquid, usually petrol (gasoline) or alcohol (generally methanol or ethanol). The mouth of the bottle is stoppered with a cork or other type of airtight bung (rubber, glass, or plastic), and a cloth rag is fixed securely around the mouth. The weapon is used by first soaking the rag in a flammable liquid immediately prior to using it, lighting the rag, and throwing the bottle at the target. The bottle shatters on impact, spilling the flammable liquid over the target, which is then ignited by the burning rag.

Many substances may be added to the basic Molotov cocktail to enhance its use as a weapon:

• Self-inflammatory materials (such as white phosphorus) may be used to guarantee the bottle's explosion as it hits the target surface.

• Tar, palm oil, laundry detergent, liquid dish soap, or other thickening agents are often added to make the burning fluid stick to the target. In their wars with the Soviet Union, Finnish soldiers often used hand soap suds for this purpose.

• Acid may be added to increase both the damage from the explosive device and its ability to penetrate fire-resistant surfaces.

Molotov cocktails are similar to napalm bombs in principle. Napalm (short for naphthenic palmitic acids) was originally made by combining flammable naphthalene and petrol with thickening agent palmitic acid, the latter two being the main ingredients of Molotov cocktails.

History

The name "Molotov cocktail" is derived from Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov, a Russian communist who was the Foreign Minister and Secretary of War of the Soviet Union. During the buildup to World War II, when Finland refused to allow Stalin to establish military bases on Finnish soil, the Soviets invaded. The poorly-equipped and heavily-outnumbered Finnish Army, facing Red Army tanks in what came to be known as the Winter War (aka the Russo-Finnish War), ironically borrowed an improvised explosive device from the Soviet-backed Spanish Republican defenders of Madrid against the Axis-backed Nationalists in the Spanish Civil War. To add mockery to this irony, when Molotov claimed in radio broadcasts that the Soviet Union was not dropping bombs, but rather delivering food to the starving Finns, the Finns responded by saluting the advancing tanks with "Molotov cocktails". This Finnish use of the hand- or sling-thrown explosive against Soviet tanks was repeated in the subsequent Continuation War. Molotov cocktails were eventually mass-produced by the Finnish military, bundled with matches to light them.

These weapons saw widespread use by all sides in World War II. They were very effective against light tanks, and very bad for enemy morale. The following is a first-hand description of their effects, written during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in 1943:

The well-aimed bottles hit the tank. The flames spread quickly. The blast of the explosion is heard. The machine stands motionless. The crew is burned alive. The other two tanks turn around and withdraw. The Germans who took cover behind them withdraw in panic. We take leave of them with a few well-aimed shots and grenades.

— Eyewitness reporting for the Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa (Jewish Fighting Organization), 19 April 1943

During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, members of the Israeli Kibbutz Dgania managed to stop a Syrian tank assault by using Molotov cocktails.

Legality

As incendiary devices, Molotov cocktails are illegal to manufacture or possess in many regions. Their use against people is typically covered under a variety of charges, including assault, actual or grevious bodily harm, manslaughter, attempted murder, and murder, depending upon their effect and upon local laws. Their use against property is usually covered under arson charges.

Handling

The easy construction of a Molotov cocktail makes it a standard weapon of guerrilla warfare and violent rioters, but it can be challenging for an amateur to make an effective device. The most common failure is in over-filling the bottle, as a full bottle will not ignite quickly when it breaks on impact (although it has a longer burning potential). For a device to explode rapidly on impact, the bottle should be only one-half to two-thirds full. Another common mistake is failing to wipe down the bottle, which removes flammable residue, prior to lighting the rag. Yet another error is to use the ignition rag directly to stopper the bottle. Other common difficulties include failing to make an airtight seal with the stopper to prevent escaping fumes, a too-long or too-loosely secured ignition rag, using an inappropriate bottle (e.g., short-necked, wide-mouthed, too fragile, or too tough), and above all, mishandling after the rag is ignited.

In short, Molotov cocktails are inherently dangerous devices due to their incendiary or explosive nature. The manufacture and use of Molotov cocktails involves serious danger to the unskilled manufacturer.

See also

• Cocktail

External link

• Artist's rendering of a Molotov cocktail (http://www.sotsart.com/img/cont/g01_005b.gif)