Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of illegally using white phosphorus munitions over a residential area in southern Lebanon.
The allegation relates to an attack on March 3 in the town of Yohmor, where the group says the incendiary weapon endangered civilians and homes.
In a report released Monday, Human Rights Watch said the Israeli military used white phosphorus munitions that exploded over residential buildings in Yohmor.
According to the group, the attack created fires in civilian areas and posed serious risks to residents.
“The incendiary effects of white phosphorus can cause death or cruel injuries that result in lifelong suffering,” said Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch.
Human Rights Watch said it verified eight images showing white phosphorus being deployed over a residential section of the town.
The footage also showed civil defence workers responding to fires that erupted in the area.
However, Reuters said it could not independently verify the findings presented by the rights organization.
The Israeli military told Reuters it was not aware of the use of white phosphorus shells in Lebanon and could not confirm the claim.
It said it had not reviewed the same videos examined by Human Rights Watch and therefore could not comment on the accusations.
Lebanese authorities have not yet issued any official statement regarding the report.
Evacuation orders issued
Earlier on March 3, the Israeli military instructed residents of Yohmor and 50 other villages and towns in southern Lebanon to evacuate.
The warning came amid escalating military operations in the region.
The issue of white phosphorus has surfaced before during tensions between Israel and Lebanon.
Reuters previously reported that Lebanese farmers had been testing soil to determine whether farming could safely resume after alleged white phosphorus use during Israeli operations in 2023.
According to the Lebanese National Council for Scientific Research, there were 175 Israeli attacks involving white phosphorus in southern Lebanon between October 2023 and July 2024.
Many of these attacks sparked fires that damaged more than 600 hectares (1,480 acres) of farmland.
White phosphorus can be legally used on battlefields for certain purposes, such as creating smoke screens, illumination, marking targets, or burning bunkers and buildings.
However, Human Rights Watch says using airburst white phosphorus over populated areas violates international humanitarian law.
The substance is classified as an incendiary weapon under Protocol III of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, which bans the use of such weapons against military targets located among civilians.
Israel has not signed this protocol and therefore is not legally bound by it.
The latest allegations come as violence intensifies across Lebanon.
Nearly 400 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands displaced as Israeli strikes have hit parts of the country for more than a week.
Human Rights Watch had previously accused Israel of using white phosphorus during its 2023 operations in Lebanon, claims the Israeli military denied at the time.
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