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Israel appears to use white phosphorus in Gaza, video shows

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/12/white-phosphorus-israel-gaza-strike-video/

The controversial munition, which is commonly used to create smoke to mark targets, can cause severe harm when used against civilians.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have raised concerns over the use of white phosphorus munitions in recent Israeli strikes on Gaza City port.

Video footage reviewed by Brian Castner of Amnesty International suggests the deployment of white phosphorus.

Human Rights Watch conducted an analysis and confirmed its use based on the video and witness testimonies describing the characteristic stifling smell.

The use of white phosphorus in densely populated areas has been condemned for the risk it poses to civilians, causing excruciating burns and lifelong suffering. International humanitarian law requires parties to take precautions to avoid civilian harm during military operations.

4 comments

autotldr

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This is the best summary I could come up with:

Human Rights Watch published an analysis Thursday confirming white phosphorus was used at the port, based in part on the same video in addition to two witnesses who noted the stifling, characteristic smell.

The Israel Defense Forces denied the weapon’s use in a statement on Friday, saying the “accusation made against the IDF regarding the use of white phosphorus in Gaza is unequivocally false.

“Any time that white phosphorus is used in crowded civilian areas, it poses a high risk of excruciating burns and lifelong suffering,” said Lama Fakih, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch in a statement Thursday.

International humanitarian law requires parties to take all feasible precautions to prevent harm to civilians that can result from military operations.

Israel repeatedly used white phosphorus during its 22-day long campaign in Gaza that spanned the end of 2008 to early 2009, including over populated areas, killing and injuring civilians, and violating International Humanitarian Law, a 2009 report from Human Rights Watch found.

Palestinian officials said more than 1,500 people in Gaza, which is one of the most densely populated places in the world, have been killed and some 6,600 injured as a result of Israeli strikes that came in response to Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack.

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Candelestine

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It would actually be preferable to use cluster bombs, I'd think. It's a small area, it's actually pretty feasible to sweep it for the duds after the action dies down.

WP can't really be readily controlled, though. Light enough to fall slowly or be blown by strong wind, sticky, resistant to most methods of fire extinguishing. Makes big fires, those are also hard to control.

ubermeisters

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They know EXACTLY what they are doing with the white phosphorus. It's an extremely demoralizing weapon. It's use should honestly should constitute a war crime, but because it also "provides the ability for infiltrating forces to provide smoke cover", they get the benefit of the doubt regarding intended use, not the melting of flesh and bone of women and children, and other non-combatants, which is how it's actually used.

Candelestine

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If smoke was desired, then supplementary non-lethal smoke munitions could be used. That is not an acceptable rationale. Israel does not lack launching platforms and should not lack for smoke munitions.