Israel has used “dirty bombs” in the Negev desert which is home to a large number of Bedouin Palestinians, a report said on Monday.

Israel has used “dirty bombs” in the Negev desert which is home to a large number of Bedouin Palestinians, a report said on Monday.

Israeli daily, Haaretz, reported that Israel recently carried out a series of tests in the desert in conjunction with a four-year project at the Dimona nuclear reactor to measure the damage and other implications of the detonation of these dirty bombs.

During project Green Field, 20 detonations were completed, then radiation levels were measured via mini-drones and the force of the blasts was logged with sensors, the reported added.

The Israeli military has refused to comment on the tests.

The report said the project had been carried out by staff from Israel's nuclear plant in the southern town of Dimona in 2014 following four years of testing.

Another project dubbed Red House was also carried out to examine the result of placing radioactive substances without detonating them in crowded areas, the report said.

According to the article, radioactive material was mixed with water and placed in the ventilation system of a structure that simulated a large crowded shopping center.

Israeli is widely thought to possess 200 to 400 nuclear nuclear warheads and refuses to either allow inspections of its nuclear facilities or join the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.