Human Rights Watch confirmed that Israel is using white phosphorus in its military aggression on Gaza and Lebanon.
Human Rights Watch confirmed that Israel is using white phosphorus in its military aggression on Gaza and Lebanon.
In a question-and-answer document released on Thursday, the group said that it “verified videos taken in Lebanon and Gaza on October 10 and 11, 2023, respectively, showing multiple airbursts of artillery-fired white phosphorus over the Gaza City port and two rural locations along the Israel-Lebanon border”.
White phosphorus, according to HRW, “has the potential to cause civilian harm due to the severe burns it causes and its lingering long-term effects on survivors.”
“Its use in densely populated areas of Gaza violates the requirement under international humanitarian law that parties to the conflict take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian injury and loss of life”.
White phosphorus “causes severe burns, often down to the bone, that are slow to heal and likely to develop infections,” the report reads.
This is not the first time Israel has used white phosphorus in a war against the besieged Gaza Strip.
It's not the Geneva checklist. Also the only legitimate use for WP is illumination or smokescreen and I guaranfuckingtee Israel doesn't need either for actions against a city.
Also don't know why they'd need to use it as a weapon when they've also shown they're happy to just drop fucking massive bombs on them... Why beat about the bush with WP?
Chemical warfare is fucking great when you intend to move in after - traditional bombs are too messy and destroy too much property.
The logic is similar to Dead Kennedys' take on the neutron bomb in their aptly named song Kill the Poor:
Efficiency and progress is ours once more
Now that we have the neutron bomb
It's nice and quick and clean and gets things done
Away with excess enemy
But no less value to property
No sense in war but perfect sense at home
If we're talking actual air raids as in bombing runs, then yeah, it's still useful for illuminating your target. Less so for rocket and artillery attacks.