Israel Confirms Use of White Phosphorous, Says It’s Only Used to Create Smokescreens

The Israel Defense Forces confirmed in a report that it uses the U.S-supplied, high-temperature white phosphorous smoke bombs recently fired into Lebanon, but claimed they're only used to create smokescreens — not for targeting or causing fires.

Three of at least nine victims of the Oct. 16 attack on Dheira had to be hospitalized, one for days, and at least four houses were incinerated, the Washington Post reported Monday.

The village near the Israeli border has reportedly been used as a staging ground by the Hezbollah terror group.

The shelling trapped residents inside their homes for hours until they were able to escape around 7 a.m. the next morning, the Post said.

Uday Abu Sari, a 29-year-old farmer, said he was unable to breathe due to smoke produced by the bombs and suffered respiratory problems for days.

“Emergency services told us to put something that was soaked in water on our faces, which helped a bit. I couldn’t see my finger in front of my face,” he said. “The whole village became white.”

White phosphorus is a waxy chemical substance that ignites on contact with oxygen, is hard to extinguish, sticks to skin and clothing, and can cause severe burns, even through bones, according to the World Health Organization.

Production codes found on fragments of three 155 mm shells fired into Dheira show they were made in Louisiana and Arkansas in 1989 and 1992, the Post said.

At least one also reportedly matched a batch used by Israel in 2009 during a 22-day offensive in Gaza.

The M825 smoke rounds eject felt wedges saturated with white phosphorus that fall haphazardly around an area and produce billows of smoke, according to the Post.

They have legitimate battlefield use to signal friendly troops, mark enemy targets and provide cover for soldiers but aren't meant to be used as incendiary weapons, the Post said.

It's unclear why Israel fired the shells into Dheira, the Post said, because they have little practical use after dark and there were no Israeli troops on the Lebanese side of the border at the time.

Dheira residents told the Post they suspected the shelling was meant to force them out so the area could be used by Israel's military.

In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces told the Post that it uses phosphorous shells to create smokescreens, not for targeting or causing fires, and that it “complies and goes beyond the requirements of international law.”

A U.S. defense official told the Post that the Pentagon was aware of reports about use of white phosphorous against Dheira, including by Amnesty International, which has said it should be investigated as a war crime.

“We take reports of its unlawful use seriously,” the official said on condition of anonymity. “We continue to underscore the importance of international humanitarian law compliance, both publicly and privately, in our conversations with our Israeli partners.”

Tuesday's report came as Congress considers a request from President Biden for nearly $106 billion in aid for Israel and Ukraine.

The executive director of Human Rights Watch, Tirana Hassan, told the Post that lawmakers should take the shelling of Dheira "seriously enough to reassess U.S. military aid to Israel.”