A report by an international rights group has said that Israel's use of white phosphorus during its recent offensive on the Gaza Strip is evidence of war crimes.Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Wednesday that the munitions were fired indiscriminately and over densely populated areas during the 23-day war, leading to many casualties.
"In Gaza, the Israeli military didn't just use white phosphorus in open areas as a screen for its troops," Fred Abrahams, senior emergencies researcher at HRW and co-author of the report, said. "It fired white phosphorus repeatedly over densely populated areas, even when its troops weren't in the area and safer smoke shells were available. As a result, civilians needlessly suffered and died."