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Gaza was a "test field" for new weaponry -- weapons'' expert

GENEVA, June 17 (KUNA) -- Weapons' Advisor Jean-Francois Fechino on Wednesday noted that Gaza, during the Israeli war, was a test field for weapons for the military industry.
Fechino, a military and environmental expert, was part of a fact-finding mission spearheaded by the Arab Commission for Human Rights, which visited Gaza and compiled a detailed report about the crimes committed by Israel, as well as the weapons used, added that there is ample evidence that depleted uranium, Dime and other weapons were used by the Israeli army during the Gaza war.
He further stressed that the new weapons used are not yet included in the international conventions that guide conduct during wars.
Fechino also pointed out that the Israelis used phosphorus bombs as offensive weapons and not as weapons to hide their movements, adding that Dime -- Dense Inert Metal Explosive -- was proved to be extensively used.
Another weapon, the GBU-39, which Israel purchased 1,000 from the United States in October 2008, was also used, he noted, saying each GBU-39 bomb weighs 113 kilograms and has the penetration capacity of bombs that weigh 900 kilograms.
Fechino said that these are intelligent and smart bombs that can be redirected to their target, they can explode on the surface or under.
This bomb, he said, was filled inside and out with depleted uranium, as one GBU-39 carries 75 kilograms of depleted uranium.
"If the 1000 bombs were used against the Philadelphia corridor that would be equivalent to 75 tons of uranium, which in turn is the equivalent of 16 nuclear bombs of the one bomb dropped over Hiroshima," he said.
He added that such a spread of depleted uranium under the soil of the Philadelphia corridor carries with it the option of radiation that would result in different cancer diseases and could also lead to the birth of babies whose genes have been modified forever.
Another weapon used, he said, was the Fuel-Air Explosive bomb derived from Napalm, an internationally-prohibited material.
He said such a bomb "opens the gates of hell", noting that the heat that results from this bomb reaches 3,000 digress Celsius, and its speed of ignition is three times the speed of sound some 3,000 kilometers per hour, resulting in absorbing the oxygen in the surface of the explosion, which in turn leads to the suffocation of those who have not been killed by injury or flames.
This weapon, Fechino noted, destroys traces of any other weapon used. (end) hn.hb KUNA 172050 Jun 09NNNN