Israel is still reeling from the firing of two phosphorous bombs at its territory from Gaza on Tuesday – a war crime under international law. The IDF confirmed on Wednesday that the onslaught of ten mortar shells and two Kassam rockets fired at Israel the day before from Gaza included two phosphorous bombs. Police sources said three of the shells were phosphorous. Following the barrage, the Israel Air Force struck back, leading to the death of an Arab arms smugger in one of the many tunnels leading from Egypt to Gaza. Firing phosphorous bombs at personnel, either civilian or military, is a war crime under international law. However, says Dr. Robbie Sabel, an international law expert at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, “there is really very little we can do about it. Turning to the UN is done only in the case of countries and states, which Hamas in Gaza is not. The only thing that can be done is to point out to the world that Hamas continues to violate military law - and take military action against them.” “It’s quite clear that Hamas has long been violating international law,” Sabel added, “and it’s quite generally well-known around the world. Even the Goldstone report stated that Hamas aims at civilians – and then went on to elaborate much more on Israel… But these phosphorous bombs are just the latest example of Hamas violations.” Asked about Arab accusations that Israel had used phosphorous bombs in the past, Dr. Sabel said, “I know that Israel does not use phosphorous bombs against personnel or in any illegal manner. Phosphorous bombs are permitted for use as smoke screens or for illumination, and Israel uses them only for those purposes.” The mortar shells and Kassam rockets fired at Israel on Tuesday landed in open areas in the Eshkol and Shaar HaNegev regions, causing no casualties or property damage.
