Israel used U.S.-made bombs to kill dozens of civilians in Rafah, weapons experts reveal, after blast sparked international outcry

According to weapons experts and visual evidence reviewed by Israeli authorities, the bombs used in the Israeli attack on a displaced persons camp in Rafah, which killed dozens of Palestinians, have been determined to have been manufactured in the United States. The New York Times.

The debris from the attack included remains of a GBU-39 bomb, which was designed and made in the US

US officials have advocated for Israel to use the bomb, claiming it would minimize civilian casualties.

Trevor Ball, a former U.S. Army explosive ordnance disposal technician, identified the bomb by its tail and unique firing pattern.

“I immediately knew the enclosure was a GBU,” Ball said CBS News. “I’ve seen a lot of it in this conflict, and I’ve even gone back and looked at past conflicts just to get a sense of what ordinance Israel has used in the past when I started looking into this, and it is a very separate target, the GBU. It’s a very unique round.’

Palestinians search for food among burned rubble in the aftermath of an Israeli attack on an area intended for displaced persons in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip

The clips, filmed by Palestinian journalist Alam Sadeq, also bore numbers beginning with “81873,” identifying the parts as manufactured by Woodward, a Colorado-based aerospace company.

At least 45 people in Kuwait’s Al-Salam Camp 1, built in January, were killed by the bombing and resulting fires, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Another 240 were injured.

The US has urged leaders in the Israeli military to use GBU-39 bombs more often because they are more accurate and better suited to urban environments than larger bombs.

Earlier this month, President Biden said the United States was suspending supplies of the larger 2,000-pound bombs that Israel often uses.

“The attack was carried out using two munitions with small warheads suitable for this targeted attack,” said Admiral Daniel Hagari, Israel’s military spokesman.

Vice Admiral Daniel Hagari explained how the military had specifically taken steps to target two Hamas leaders killed in the attack and had not expected the bombs to harm nearby civilians.

National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby said there is still “no major ground operation,” following repeated U.S. contact with Israel urging Israel to protect civilian lives.

The bombs contained 17 kilograms of explosive material, he said. “This is the smallest munition our fighter jets can use.”

Hagari explained how the military had specifically taken steps to target two Hamas leaders killed in the attack.

They did not expect the bombs to harm nearby civilians.

But the bombs landed in a camp for people who had been expelled from other parts of Gaza earlier in the war. Tents were seen nearby, and images appeared to show fires had been started by the bombing.

“Our ammunition alone could not have ignited a fire of this magnitude,” Admiral Hagari insisted.

“The Israelis have said they used 37-pound bombs,” White House spokesman John F. Kirby said at a briefing. “If that is indeed what they used, it certainly indicates an attempt to be discreet, purposeful and precise.”

Palestinians look at the destruction after an Israeli attack that left displaced people in Rafah in the Gaza Strip

Palestinians are migrating, carrying their personal belongings, to areas they consider safe after the Israeli army attacked tents in Al-Mawasi, previously declared a ‘safe zone’ by Israel, in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza

On Wednesday, the Israeli army took control of a strategic corridor along Gaza’s border with Egypt to seal off smuggling tunnels as the country tries to crush the militant Hamas group in a war now in its eighth month.

The capture of the Philadelphi Corridor could complicate Israel’s relationship with Egypt who has complained about Israel’s advance towards its border.

Israel says the corridor is awash with tunnels that have funneled weapons and other supplies to Hamas — despite a yearslong blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt.

Israel has also deepened its incursion into Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of people have sought shelter from the fighting. The army said a fifth brigade – up to several thousand soldiers – joined troops operating in the city on Tuesday.

Egypt says any expansion of troops in the strategic border area would violate the 1979 peace deal. Complaints have already been raised about Israel’s takeover of the Rafah crossing, the only border crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

An Israeli military official said Israel had informed Egypt of the takeover. About 20 tunnels were found, including some previously unknown to Israel, as well as 82 access points to the tunnels, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with military regulations. It was not clear whether the tunnels were currently in use.

The fighting in Rafah has displaced 1 million people, most of whom had already been displaced from other parts of Gaza, according to the United Nations.

Palestinians witness the devastation after Israel bombed their tents and shelters in Rafah, Gaza

The US and other allies have warned against a full-fledged offensive in Rafah, with the Biden administration saying it would cross a “red line” and refusing to supply offensive weapons for such an undertaking. But so far the country has not tried to stop Israel’s advance.

Last week, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to halt its offensive in Rafah as part of the South African case accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, an accusation Israel denies.

The war began when militants invaded southern Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking about 250 hostages.

More than 100 were released during a ceasefire in November in exchange for Palestinians captured by Israel.

The Israeli offensive in response to the attack has killed at least 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians. Israel says it has killed 15,000 militants.