Fires erupt in Lebanese town after Israel strikes with white phosphorus bombs

A fire erupted in the town of Kounine in southern Lebanon on Monday after an Israeli airstrike using white phosphorus bombs, according to the Lebanese media.

The state-run National News Agency said the Israeli army deliberately struck the town with white phosphorus bombs.

No information was yet available about injuries or damage.

There was no comment from the Israeli army on the accusation.

Last week, the Lebanese Health Ministry called for international condemnation of Israel's use of white phosphorus bombs in attacks in southern Lebanon.

Under international humanitarian law, the use of airburst white phosphorus is unlawfully indiscriminate in populated areas.

Fears have grown about a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah amid a months-long exchange of cross-border fire, especially with Hezbollah threatening military retaliation after the assassination of its top commander, Fouad Shukr, in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut on July 30.

The escalation comes against the backdrop of an Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip, which has killed nearly 40,000 people since last October following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.