US general: No phosphorus ever used on Iraqi civilians

US Major General Rick Lynch reiterated Pentagon assertions today that white phosphorus had not been used on innocent Iraqi civilians, but had been used to mark targets by lighting up the night sky.

Speaking at a press conference in Baghdad, Lynch added that the United States fully supported Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari in his investigation into allegations of abuse at a detention centre in Baghdad’s Jadriyah district.

Speaking of the allegations, Lynch said: “All questions will be answered.”

Pentagon officials acknowledged on Tuesday that US troops used white phosphorus as a weapon against insurgent strongholds during the battle of Fallujah last November.

At the same time, they denied an Italian television news report that the spontaneously flammable material had been used against civilians.