A string of deadly pager explosions targeting devices owned by Hezbollah operatives have led to at least 8 deaths and over two thousand people injured in Lebanon and Syria, on Tuesday, reported AFP.
The hand-held pagers, which simultaneously exploded in Lebanon and parts of Syria, were primarily used by Hezbollah operatives to avoid the use of phones which could be tracked by the Israeli intelligence.
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The Iranian envoy to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, was one among thousands of people injured by the blasts, hours after Israeli officials had stated that they had foiled an attempt by the Hezbollah to target Tel Aviv’s security agency with a remote detonating device.
Here’s what we know so far:
Injuries and deaths
Though allegedly meant to target only Hezbollah agents, the blasts caused devastating damage for several people, including an eight-year-old girl who died after succumbing to injuries.
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Security officials told Reuters that one of the fighters killed was the son of a Hezbollah member of the Lebanese parliament, Ali Ammar. The Hezbollah has confirmed that three out of eight dead are their operatives.
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Lebanon’s health ministry confirmed that more than 2,750 people had been wounded, out of which 200 were in critical conditions. 14 people were wounded in Syria.
Though the blasts were relatively contained, footage recorded in hospitals and shared on social media showed people with varying degrees of injuries to the face, missing fingers, and wounds to the hip, according to Reuters.
The blasts did not appear to start any fires.
Israel’s involvement
Lebanon’s foreign ministry has called the blasts an “Israeli cyber attack, though the Israeli government has issued no official statement yet. Lebanon’s information minister has also termed the attack as an “assault” on Lebanon’s sovereignty.
The blasts took place right after an Israeli statement on foiling a Hezbollah attempt to kill a senior official.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah has stated that they will retaliate with a “fair punishment” for what they view as an Israeli aggression against them.
Israel and the Hezbollah have been at loggerheads ever since Israel’s conflict with Hamas began on October 7 last year.
The United States of America, an ally of Israel, stated that they were not aware of the attacks and not involved, reported AFP.
How did it happen
At 3:30 pm local time, hundreds of hand-held pagers detonated, with blasts lasting for hours after the initial explosions. The pagers were new devices adopted by the Hezbollah and were largely detonated in southern Beirut, Damascus and Beqaa, where the presence of the Hezbollah is strong.
Experts told news agency AP that there was no information on how the pagers mysteriously exploded, except that they must have been remotely detonated. They also said that this showed signs of a well-planned operation that must have been in the works for a while.
Alex Plitsas, a weapons expert at the Atlantic Council, told AP, that it was possible that Israeli agencies were aware of the shipment of the pagers and had modified them before they reached the Hezbollah.
Scientist and senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies, Yehoshua Kalisky stated that an “electronic pulse” could have triggered the devices. “It is not some random action; it was deliberate and known.”
