White Phosphorus Shells Used in UN Attack, Israel Called to Task

Israeli forces shelled the United Nations headquarters in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, setting fire to the compound filled with hundreds of refugees as U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon was in the region on a mission to end Israel's devastating offensive against the territory's Hamas rulers.

Shells also struck a hospital, five high-rise apartment buildings and a building housing media outlets in Gaza City, injuring several journalists.

Bullets entered another building housing The Associated Press offices, entering a room where two staffers were working but wounding no one. The Foreign Press Association, representing journalists covering Israel and the Palestinian territories, demanded a halt to attacks on press buildings.

The army has collected the locations of media organizations to avoid such attacks.

From a UN Press Briefing

Answering correspondent’s questions, he said several United Nations buildings had suffered collateral damage, but had not been targeted.  There had been no injuries from those incidents.  There had not been any strikes on the schools.  UNRWA had provided the Israeli liaison officers with the GPS coordinates and with updates on what facilities were being used for shelter. 

Convoys were passing safely through the humanitarian corridors.  The provided assurances had been proven reliable.  United Nations buildings were flying the United Nations flag, were painted blue and, through their design, stood out from neighbouring buildings.

As for allegations that shots had been fired from a school where 43 people had been killed when it was shelled, he said such “back and forth” was just not appropriate.  The people and the victims were entitled to accountability.  He reiterated that an independent investigation was necessary, on the basis of which accountability should follow.

He was “just not going to answer” allegations that UNRWA had been infiltrated by Hamas.  No evidence had ever been provided by any authority, at any level.  Absolutely no official allegation had been made. 

He had no indication that the Hamas leadership was using Shiva hospital and he had no first-hand knowledge that Israel was using white phosphorus.

Israel's military chief on Tuesday denied accusations that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) was using shells containing white phosphorus, local daily The Jerusalem Post reported.

Chief of General Staff Gabi Ashkenazi made the denial at a parliamentary committee in charge of foreign and defense affairs in responding to a query by a lawmaker who raised the issue amid spreading reports that the chemical was suspected in several cases of injuries in the Gaza Strip.

"The IDF acts only in accordance with what is permitted by international law and does not use white phosphorus," Ashkenazi was quoted as saying.

White phosphorus (WP) is a flare- and smoke-producing incendiary device[1] or smoke-screening agent that is made from a common allotrope of the chemical element phosphorus. White phosphorus bombs and shells are incendiary weapons, but can also be used as offensive anti-personnel flame compounds capable of causing serious burns or death.[2] The agent is used in bombs, artillery, and mortars, short-range missiles which burst into burning flakes of phosphorus upon impact. White phosphorus is commonly referred to in military jargon as "WP". The slang term "Willy(ie) Pete" or "Willy(ie) Peter", dating from World War I and common at least through the Vietnam War, is still occasionally heard.

White phosphorus weapons are controversial today because of their potential use against civilians. While the Chemical Weapons Convention does not designate WP as a chemical weapon, various groups consider it to be one. In recent years, the United States, Israel, and Russia have used white phosphorus in combat.

White phosphorus can cause injuries and death in three ways: by burning deep into tissue, by being inhaled as a smoke, and by being ingested. Extensive exposure by burning and ingestion is fatal.

Incandescent particles of WP cast off by a WP weapon's initial explosion can produce extensive, deep (second and third degree), burns. Phosphorus burns carry a greater risk of mortality than other forms of burns due to the absorption of phosphorus into the body through the burned area, resulting in liver, heart and kidney damage, and in some cases multi-organ failure.

WP smoke irritates the eyes and nose in moderate concentrations. With intense exposures, a very explosive cough may occur. However, no recorded casualties from the effects of WP smoke alone have occurred in combat operations and to date there are no confirmed deaths resulting from exposure to phosphorus smoke.

UNWRA, which looks after around four million Palestinian refugees in the region, suspended its operations in Gaza after the attack, in which three of its employees were injured.

Chris Gunness, a UNRWA spokesman, said that the building had been used to shelter hundreds of people fleeing Israel’s 20-day offensive in Gaza. He said that pallets with supplies desperately needed by Palestinians in Gaza were on fire.

"What more stark symbolism do you need?" he said. "You can’t put out white phosphorus with traditional methods such as fire extinguishers. You need sand, we don’t have sand."

The Israeli military has denied using white phosphorus shells in the Gaza offensive, although an investigation by The Times has revealed that dozens of Palestinians in Gaza have sustained serious injuries from the substance, which burns at extremely high temperatures.

The Geneva Convention of 1980 proscribes the use of white phosphorus as a weapon of war in civilian areas, although it can be used to create a smokescreen. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said today that all weapons used in Gaza were "within the scope of international law".

The Israeli military has denied the allegations that it has improperly used white phosphorous shells, saying only that it uses munitions in accordance with international law.

But Abrahams refutes the claim. "We saw it (white phosphorous) bursting over Gaza ourselves.  It has a distinguishable appearance - which is a155 mm artillery fired shell that explodes in the air, sending down about 100 burning wafers, which leave smoking trails.  We saw them detonate over the Gaza City/Jabaliya area,” he wrote.

White phosphorous with its distinct garlic smell is under international law permissible to use as an "obscurant" to mask troop movements particularly in open areas or to illuminate targets at night, but its use is controversial as it can cause severe chemical burns to people.

The usage of white phosphorous against civilians is prohibited under international law.