What we know about Israel’s white phosphorus attacks in southern Lebanon

Since October 7, 2023, fighting between Israel and Hezbollah has increased on the Lebanese-Israeli border. White phosphorus munitions, fired by the Israeli army, targeted areas populated by Lebanese civilians. This is what a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report published this Wednesday, June 5, indicates.

This led to the displacement of residents from several border villages located on the Lebanese-Israeli border. Seventeen municipalities in southern Lebanon were targeted with white phosphorus munitions. At least five of these were residential areas populated by civilians. The NGO affirms the need for a war crimes investigation.

White phosphorus is a chemical compound dispersed by artillery shells, bombs or rockets. Upon contact with air, the munitions instantly ignite at a heat of approximately 815 degrees, producing light and thick smoke screens.

Use of white phosphorus by the Israeli army since 1982

When white phosphorus comes into contact with the skin, it causes “ second or third degree burns », Testifies Dr Tharwat Zahran, medical toxicologist and assistant professor of emergency medicine at the American University of Beirut to HRW. Lesions that can affect the bones. This toxic substance is also harmful to the eyes and lungs and causes respiratory problems.

The Israelis began using white phosphorus munitions in southern Lebanon during the 1982 invasion. Its use has marked all wars in Lebanon until today. This military tactic aims to protect ground troops by camouflaging them from the enemy. Legal under certain conditions, the use of white phosphorus has been diverted from its initial function in Lebanon, according to the NGO, by targeting areas populated by civilians.

Among 47 photos and videos that show the use of munitions in the region, HRW spotted five border villages in southern Lebanon hit by thick clouds of smoke. They land on the roofs of residential buildings.

Human Rights Watch has testimonies from eight residents of southern Lebanon. She has not recorded any cases of injuries directly linked to white phosphorus. But on May 24, 2024, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said that at least 173 people had been injured since October 2023.

The NGO Amnesty International confirms that a phosphorus attack carried out against the town of Dhayra, located in southern Lebanon, “ must be investigated as a war crime as it was an indiscriminate attack that injured at least nine civilians and damaged civilian objects and was therefore unlawful », she reported on October 31, 2023.

Strengthen international laws

Currently, white phosphorus is not recognized as a chemical weapon. Its incendiary nature is controversial although it causes fires to start. Its use is regulated by Protocol III on the prohibition or limitation of the use of incendiary weapons of Geneva of 1980, which restricted the use but does not prohibit it. Human Rights Watch calls for tougher restrictions. “ Stricter international standards against the use of white phosphorus are needed to ensure these weapons do not continue to endanger civilians “, explained Ramzi Kaiss, researcher at HRW.

“ Israel’s recent use of white phosphorus in Lebanon should motivate other countries to take immediate steps to achieve this goal. » Unlike Lebanon, Israel is not one of the signatories to this protocol and is therefore not subject to it. The white phosphorous weapon was also used in the Gaza Strip. On December 27, 2008, during Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli government denied the use of white phosphorus for months before recognizing it at the end of July 2009.