During the first six weeks of the war in Gaza, Israel routinely used one of its biggest and most destructive bombs in areas it designated safe for civilians, according to an analysis of visual evidence by NYT. The video investigation focuses on the use of 2,000-pound bombs in an area of southern Gaza where Israel had ordered civilians to move for safety. While bombs of that size are used by several Western militaries, munitions experts say they are almost never dropped by US forces in densely populated areas anymore.
The NYT programmed an artificial intelligence tool to scan satellite imagery of south Gaza for bomb craters.Times reporters manually reviewed the search results, looking for craters measuring roughly 40 feet across or larger. Munitions experts say typically only 2,000-pound bombs form craters of that size in Gaza’s light, sandy soil. Ultimately, the investigation identified 208 craters in satellite imagery and drone footage. Because of limited satellite imagery and variations in a bomb’s effects, there are likely to have been many cases that were not captured. But the findings reveal that 2,000-pound bombs posed a pervasive threat to civilians seeking safety across south Gaza.
In response to questions about the bomb’s use, an Israeli military spokesman said that Israel’s priority was destroying Hamas and “questions of this kind will be looked into at a later stage.” The spokesman also said the IDF “takes feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm.” The Pentagon increased shipments to Israel of smaller bombs that it considers better suited to urban environments like Gaza. Still, since Oct, the US has also sent over 5,000 MK-84 munitions – a type of 2,000-pound bomb.