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| - Fact Check: Old video falsely shared as Israel deploying white phosphorus on Gaza
According to reports from March 2023, this video is from Ukraine's Vuhledar – a key location in the conflict between Ukrainian and Russian troops.
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India Today Fact Check
This video is at least seven months old, and according to reports from March this year, it shows thermite bombs being deployed by Russian forces in Ukraine.
Israel, since it began the siege of Gaza, has been accused of using white phosphorus munitions on the civilian population. A video now making the rounds on social media alleges to show the Israeli Air Force dropping phosphorus bombs on Gaza. The video shows a sky filled with bright, white flashes raining down on the streets.
White phosphorus can ignite rapidly spreading fires on the ground, making it extremely challenging to extinguish. The substance poses a grave danger to civilians, causing deep tissue and bone burns, and it can reignite even after initial treatment. Because of its destructive effects, the use of white phosphorus munitions in war is tightly regulated under international law — and is illegal to be used near civilians.
Our Probe
A reverse search of the video's keyframes led us to media reports from March 2023 that contained the same footage. According to a report by The Sun, which included screenshots from the video, the footage depicts "thermite rain", an incendiary weapon used by Russian forces over the town of Vuhledar, a mining town north of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.
Thermite bombs, made of metal powder mixed with metal oxide, burn at temperatures exceeding 2,400°C. It is capable of searing through steel and causing deep tissue and bone burns, with the capacity to reignite even after initial treatment. These lethal devices are particularly dangerous because they burn instead of exploding.
A longer version of this video was also uploaded to The Telegraph's YouTube channel on March 13, 2023. According to the Daily Express, Ukrainian MP Roman Hryshchuk also shared footage of the thermite rain on social media in March.
The Palestinian government, among others, has accused the Israel Defense Forces of using white phosphorus munitions in its strikes against Gaza. This claim was made on October 10 in a social media post by the Palestinian Foreign Ministry, attaching a video showing the aftermath of an alleged strike using the incendiary weapon.
So, while we could not independently verify whether Israel used white phosphorus in the recent conflict, it’s nonetheless clear that this specific video does not show that.
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