Munitions that pose a high risk of maiming civilians have been fired over Gaza City and in Lebanon, the watchdog has claimed.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has reported having verified videos of Israel deploying controversial white phosphorus munitions, including over Gaza City, amid the ongoing confrontation with Hamas. The substance produces an incendiary effect and when discharged over densely populated areas risks indiscriminate harm to civilians.
The Israeli military fired 155mm airburst artillery shells over Gaza’s port on Wednesday and over two rural locations in the border area of Lebanon on Tuesday, the international organization reported on Thursday. It analyzed video footage of the incidents and interviewed witnesses to confirm the nature of the weapons used. The deployment of white phosphorus in Gaza is of particular concern, since it puts civilians in the area at risk, the watchdog noted.
“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.
“White phosphorus is unlawfully indiscriminate when airburst in populated urban areas, where it can burn down houses and cause egregious harm to civilians,” she added.
The compound ignites on contact with oxygen in the air, producing foul-smelling dense smoke. Munitions with white phosphorus can be used for signaling or to produce a smoke screen.
A person caught under a burst can suffer deep chemical and thermal burns, while the white phosphorus can enter the bloodstream and produce debilitating scars, HRW stressed. Injuries also tend to reignite when the wound is again exposed to oxygen, such as when bandages are changed.
Israel fired dozens of white phosphorus munitions during Operation Cast Lead in 2008-2009, triggering international outcry. In 2013, when the Israeli High Court of Justice reviewed a complaint over the use of such weapons in Gaza, the military pledged that it would no longer use them in populated areas, with exceptions possible only in certain specific situations.
HRW urged the Israel Defense Forces to use smoke charges that do not contain white phosphorus, noting that some local companies produce them. The Israeli military did not comment on the accusations, which were first aired by the Palestinian authorities on Tuesday.
Israel has laid siege to Gaza in retaliation for the deadly incursion by the militant group Hamas last week, which was the worst breach of the country’s security in five decades. The raids and simultaneous rocket barrages resulted in more than 1,300 deaths, while dozens of Israelis were taken hostage. The Israeli government declared war on Hamas and has declared that it seeks its total destruction.
Officials in Gaza said Israeli strikes had killed more than 1,500 people, as of Thursday.
https://www.scottritterextra.com/p/why-i-no-longer-stand-with-israel?publication_id=6892&post_id=137939790&triggerShare=true&isFreemail=true&r=1u575z
What will the ‘Global Community’ do about this use of Willy Pete (White Phosphorus), denial of basic human needs, and the decades long human abuse of an open air prison ie Gaza and the West Bank?
ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!!
I agree with Hal Turner (Hal Turner Radio Show)- let BOTH sides destroy each other!
And then, when this goes nuclear, the J3w$ won’t have a ‘home’ per se’, as the entire country will be contaminated with radioactive fall-out, or destroyed beyond repair!
The J3w$ will move to the U.S. (Israel West) just as Zelensky will (in Miami), and the Arabs will try and migrate to other Arab / Moslem Nations.
Just evil but then the US and its cronies, are just that….I’m not religious but when I hear about this, I hope there is a hell for people who do things like this…….
Those Zionist are the “indespicable animals” on this earth.
In solidarity with palestinan, i won t touch the hand of a *** Ever !!
Wow, I think I’ll screen shot the replies above so I can use them when someone starts prattling on about ‘hate speech’ and the need to censor.
My Grandfather died fighting the Nazis. He had Jewish heritage. Do I need to be worried here in NZ?
War is terrible. It’s always the innocent civilians caught in the middle who suffer most. Whether they’re slaughtered like cattle at a peace dance in the desert or die from formerly banned cluster bombs or other indescriminate use of chemicals, sometimes deployed by dictators against their own citizens (as in Syria). Humans are capable of barbarity. That’s what we’re being shown once again.
Makes me thankful I live in NZ…?
In an ideal world innocent babies wouldn’t be slaughtered, nor used as human shields for those who are so twisted, they’re capable of psychopathic acts too medieval and depraved for the media to disseminate. Unfortunately the media sanitisation leads to skewed perception.
At least Israel is warning Gazans with leaflet drops to evacuate. So clearly, civilians aren’t their target. Those dancers in the desert and many Jewish settlements got no warning of their impending slaughter. No chance to run. They WERE the target, simply because they are Jews.
Hopefully the Hamas butchers remain in Gaza and are not too cowardly to finish the war they started?
Islam makes the Jews the specific target because of its hatred of Jews as codified in the Qur’an. Muhammad attacked many Jewish tribes and eviscerated them (best way I can think of putting it politely but directly).
When innocents are deliberately attacked and slaughtered like they were, then it exposes those who are truly evil: Those who did it and those who supported it and those who continue to support it. What happened has nothing to do with land or geo-politics, only that innocent people were slaughtered and the rest of humanities response to it.
If there is any sort of “silver lining” to this, it is that it is now exposing “in the daylight” the people who support authentic evil.
” when innocent are delibarately slaughtered etc”
and what about that interview, mr. selfrightous-playing-antisemitism-card-again ?
Are you yourself a victim ?
https://logosjournal.com/morris.htm
Dont you know that israel was funded through terror ? Murder, theft and rape. And what the palestinians have suffered through jewish occupation/theft of their land for 75 years ? What reason will you invoke to have commited genocide ? or ethnic ” cleansing” . What wrong did the palestinians to jewish people ?
Of course hamas ( funded by the way by israel/USA) will retaliate. The ones living on their land are ordinary thieves and murderers. Not innocent victims.
There is nothing anti semitic about it.
I would do the same to anybody doing that to me
So, my comment regarding antisemitic comments and barbarity didn’t make it. I did screen capture comments above. Time to exercise MY free speech, which WAS reasoned in comparison with the above. And WRITE. I can only hope that sentiments above, alongside chants in places like Australia to “gas the Jews” leave normal people recoiling in justified disgust.
It wasn’t just the J*** that were gassed;
The Freemasons-
The Seventh Day Adventists-
The Mormons-
The Roma-
The Communists-
The Resistance (ie White Rose led by Sophie Schall & her brother Herman)-
Russian & Eastern European POW’s-
Allied Airmen and Allied Ground Forces-
I wrote to the International Red Cross 5 years ago asking for the numbers, as I had seen these some years before, but have since been taken down and are offline, but,..
They referred me to Tel Aviv which-of course, has omitted the other groups who perished in the camps and gas chambers.
*As a former Israeli PM has said with regards to using the Holocaust to inflict guilt and force decisions to favour Israel; ‘The holocaust, it’s a trick! We ALWAYS use it!” (*still up on YouTube…)
See the Snordster video titled ‘Slave’…
https://off-guardian.org/2023/10/14/while-you-were-watching-israel/