Is Israel using uranium, cluster munitions in attacks on Lebanon?

Lebanese investigators and international law experts have accused Israel of using unconventional weapons, such as depleted uranium, in its recent wave of attacks on Lebanon in flagrant violation of international law.

Lebanon's Atomic Energy Commission said it was investigating Israel's use of depleted uranium in its weapons, such as phosphorus bombs, smart guided bombs, and, lately, bunker-buster bombs, particularly in its air strikes on the Lebanese capital Beirut over the past three weeks.

The intensity of the explosions, particularly in Beirut's Dahiyeh suburbs, has led many to believe that unconventional weapons not seen in any previous wars in the Middle East, were being used by Israel.

Suspicions over the use of unconventional weapons were first raised by Lebanon's Syndicate of Chemists after observing the shape and colours of smoke emitted after strikes and the destructive nature of the explosions. 

One such deadly strike on Beirut killed former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, despite being known to take shelter in heavily fortified underground bunkers.

The head of Lebanon's Atomic Energy Commission, Bilal al-Nsouli, told local media that the commission was unable to determine whether Israel used depleted uranium until after a series of specialised laboratory tests were carried out.

He confirmed that his commission had taken samples from sites of attack which were targeted by Israeli strikes, which had followed specific indicators similar to when there were previous suspicions of the use of depleted uranium in Iraq, Bosnia and Montenegro, one of which was the use of so-called "bunker-buster" bombs.

Meanwhile, the use of white phosphorus in densely populated areas - prohibited under international law - was widely reported since Israel and Hezbollah began cross-border attacks in October 2023, with multiple Lebanese media outlets documenting instances of its use across the country. 

Al-Nsouli confirmed that white phosphorus had been used "in several locations" and outlined methods for mitigating its effects.

On Wednesday, the L'Orient-Le Jour daily questioned if Israel had also been using cluster munitions in its latest attacks on Lebanon as it had previously done in its 2006 war against Hezbollah.

In 2006 Israel dropped four million internationally banned munitions across the country, the daily said.

On Sunday, Hezbollah accused Israel of shelling border towns in southern Lebanon with internationally banned cluster bombs.

The Lebanese group said the Israeli army bombed the area between the towns of Hanin and Tayri with rockets loaded with banned cluster bombs.

"We are not surprised at all by the new barbaric crime, which is added to Israel's record of crimes against the Lebanese and Palestinian peoples," the group said in a statement.

Israel has mounted massive strikes across Lebanon against what it claims are Hezbollah targets since 23 September, killing at least 1,437 people, injuring over 4,123 others, and displacing more than 1.34 million people.

On Thursday, Israeli forces wiped out the southern Lebanon village of Mhaibib in a series of massive explosions.

While Israeli forces have already demolished many buildings and villages in southern Lebanon, the incident marked the first time a detonation of this magnitude had taken place.