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11/12/2005 Archived Entry: "White Phosphorus"

Gordon P. writes, Army officials "pre-emptively confirmed" that "White Phosphorus" incendiary shells were fired _directly_ into the trenches held by the "insurgents" of Fallujah during the Army's "shake and bake" missions on that besieged city, in contradiction to Bushnev Administration official's claims that the "WP" shells were used "only for illumination..."

White phosphorus creates toxic clouds when it burns that contaminate the surrounding air for hundreds of feet around the burning shell. Burning white phosphorus was used as one of the very first ever chemical weapons during WW-I. While not technically "banned" by treaty, the use of "WP" as an incendiary weapon against civilians, or against soldiers in areas where civilians might be present, is strongly deprecated by the 1980 "Convention on Conventional Weapons, Protocol III." (Apparently, the Bushneviks have once against decided that "insurgents" and other "enemy combatants" are do not count as "soldiers" under this Convention --- which past administrations abided by, even though (as usual!) the U.S. has not actually gotten around to _ratifying_ this treaty...)

Interestingly, the keepers of the Wikipedia have already picked up this story, and have updated the "History" section of the "White Phosphorus" entry accordingly.