The Washington Post has confirmed that Israel used U.S.-supplied white phosphorus in attacks on southern Lebanon. White phosphorus poses a high risk of excruciating burns and lifelong suffering, and its use as an incendiary weapon in civilian areas is a war crime — which under U.S. law should have implications for future military aid to Israel. The Post’s investigation found white phosphorus attacks left at least four people hospitalized and forced the evacuation of the town of Dheira in southern Lebanon. In Washington, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller addressed the reports.

Matthew Miller: “Anytime that we provide items like white phosphorus, or really anything, to another military, we do it with the expectation that it will be used for legitimate purposes and in full keeping with international humanitarian law and the law of armed conflict. So we’re looking into this and looking for additional information.”