A Molotov cocktail , also known as a petrol bomb, poor man's grenade, fire bomb (not to be confused with an actual fire bomb) or just Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of bottle-based  improvised incendiary weapons. Due to the relative ease of production, they are frequently used by street criminals, protesters and non-professionally equipped fighters in riots, gang warfare, and urban guerrilla warfare. They are primarily intended to set targets ablaze rather than instantly obliterate them.