51
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
this post was submitted on 08 May 2024
51 points (100.0% liked)
World News
31292 readers
518 users here now
News from around the world!
Rules:
-
Please only post links to actual news sources, no tabloid sites, etc
-
No NSFW content
-
No hate speech, bigotry, propaganda, etc
founded 4 years ago
MODERATORS
White phosphorus is frequently used in smoke munitions, where it is not prohibited by international law. Additionally, a thermobaric weapon is another name for a fuel-air bomb, where an explosive is dispersed in the air and then the whole cloud is ignited, creating a large explosion. Thermobaric weapons are not banned, and have nothing to do with WP.
I'm making no claims about the IDF using or not using WP on civilians, which is illegal, but simply pointing out the misleading use of buzzwords in this summary.
White phosphorus is restricted under international law. If it is being used in Gaza that is a war crime.
It's a little more complicated than that.
That is specific to incendiary munitions, where the WP is used for its flame effects. WP also happens to be what makes tracer rounds glow as they fly through the air. Because the risk of fire is very low, this is an example of a usage that is not banned, even in civilian areas.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convention_on_Certain_Conventional_Weapons
https://treaties.un.org/pages/ViewDetails.aspx?chapter=26&clang=_en&mtdsg_no=XXVI-2&src=TREATY
Protocol 3 is what you're looking for.