Palestine has alleged that Israel employed white phosphorus bombs against civilians in Gaza Strip’s Karama neighborhood as it vowed to escalate its response to a Hamas attack with a ground offensive.
In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry accused the Israeli occupation of using internationally banned white phosphorus bombs on the residents of Karama in northern Gaza.
Israeli warplanes and artillery use internationally #prohibited_white_phosphorus, destroying #Al_Karama neighborhood in the northwest of Gaza City with a continuous series of airstrikes. There are casualties and wounded, while ambulances and civil defense vehicles are unable to… pic.twitter.com/ym7zfKqIBH
Rami Abdo, the founder of the European Observatory for Human Rights, shared a video on the same platform, alleging that Israeli military forces were using toxic white phosphorus bombs in densely populated areas northwest of Gaza City.
Human Rights Watch, a New York-based rights group, had previously cited reports of Israel’s use of white phosphorus bombs in Gaza during past conflicts.
The use of white phosphorus weapons for generating smokescreens and covering troop movements is legally accepted, but the 1980 Geneva Convention forbids its use in densely populated areas. Israel did not comment on the claim.
The Israeli military disclosed that dozens of its fighter jets targeted over 200 locations in a neighborhood of Gaza City, which Hamas had allegedly used to launch a series of attacks. Gaza’s health ministry reported that at least 900 people had been killed and 4,600 wounded in the crowded coastal enclave.
⚡️The regime is using what looks like Phosphorus munitions on civilian areas in Gaza pic.twitter.com/6N4d3Arjkh
Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip carried out a deadly attack in southern Israel, capturing scores of Israelis and foreigners as hostages. Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported a death toll of 1,200, with the majority being civilians.
Hamas claimed the attack was a response to Israeli violations in the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem and increased settler violence.
Over 260,000 people in Gaza have been forced to flee their homes due to heavy Israeli bombardments from air, land, and sea. The United Nations reported that more than 263,934 people had fled their homes, with the number expected to rise further.
The bombing campaign destroyed over 1,000 housing units, rendering 560 uninhabitable. Nearly 175,500 displaced individuals sought shelter in 88 schools run by the UN agency supporting Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.
Additional people sought refuge in government schools, with some staying with relatives, neighbors, or in churches.
This displacement represents the highest number since the 50-day escalation of hostilities in 2014, making it increasingly challenging to meet basic needs for those who have not been displaced.
Israel imposed a “complete siege” on the already blockaded Gaza Strip, cutting off food, water, fuel, and electricity, further worsening an already dire humanitarian situation, according to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The Iron Dome anti-missile system in Israel intercepts rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, visible from Ashkelon, Israel.
Israeli media reported an airstrike on the home of relatives of Mohammad Deif, the Hamas military commander, in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip. Several relatives were reportedly killed in the attack, while others were trapped in the rubble.
