ELi5: What makes white phosphorus so dangerous when used as a weapon of war?
In: 291
As others have explained, getting white phosphorus on your body is incredibly damaging. But what has not been mentioned is how it is “applied” to people: usually chunks of it are exploded in a way that makes it quite indiscriminate. For instance, in 2008-2009 Israel used white phosphorus shells allegedly to provide smoke screens. When these shells explode “the canister deploys 116 units 19 millimetres (0.75 in), quarter-circle wedges of felt impregnated with 5.8 kilograms (12.75 lb) of WP, producing a smokescreen lasting 5–10 minutes depending on weather conditions. These submunitions typically land in an elliptical pattern 125–250 meters in diameter” (Wikipedia, White phosphorus munitions). An area that large in an urban area is not targeting anyone specific, or even a small group of people or a specific installation – it is almost guaranteed to indiscriminately severely injure many people.
Latest Answers