At least 12 people were killed and thousands injured in the blasts on Tuesday. The next day, the violence intensified with a second wave of explosions. This time, explosions struck Beirut and other areas, including during funerals for victims of the first attack. The death toll in this second round rose to at least 20, while hundreds were injured.
Panicked attendees shouted, “Turn off your phones!” They feared their phones would explode. A voice on the loudspeaker repeated this request, urging mourners to “Take out the batteries!”
One woman caught in the chaos, Um Ibrahim, asked a reporter for a mobile phone to contact her children, shouting: “Turn off your phones immediately!”
Fear was evident as people recalled the violence of the previous day. “I didn’t understand what was happening; at first I thought it was a terrorist attack,” Ali, a 22-year-old trader, told the Guardian. He described how people began throwing their phones on the ground, thinking they might explode.
At one hospital, a doctor – who asked not to be named – who saw the severe injuries told the Guardian: “You never face an eye emergency like this.” Another doctor said: “This is crippling 2,000 people at the same time.”
Mohammed Awada, 52, was driving with his son when he witnessed a horrifying incident. A man standing nearby’s pager suddenly exploded, seriously injuring him. “My son went crazy and started screaming when he saw the man’s hand fly away from him,” Awada said, recalling the horrific experience.
Is this the result of his own failure?
Lebanon resonated after a speech delivered by Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in February, following a series of explosions in the country. During his speech, Nasrallah asked people to “bury” their phones and called them the new “agents” of the Israelis. He claimed that Israel no longer needed agents on the ground to target people, as they could do so through “listening devices” in people’s pockets. He alleged that “the Israelis” had hacked the internet, and asked people to “disconnect” it, HezbollahHe said he had won the battle. He claimed his administration was “seriously” dealing with the agent.
Also read: How Israel’s Mossad turned everyday pagers into deadly weapons against Hezbollah
The Hezbollah Secretary General also condemned the “Zionist” aggression that began on 7 October, which “targeted civilians of all ages in Gaza”. He praised the Palestinian resistance and the extraordinary resilience and patience shown by the people of Gaza, who have endured extreme hardships during this period.
The complex nature of these attacks has led to widespread speculation about their origins. Recent reports suggest that Israel may be behind these operations. The devices involved were not simple pagers and walkie-talkies, but were reportedly armed with explosives before the attacks. This complex sabotage was reportedly designed to cause maximum damage and confusion among Hezbollah’s ranks.
According to the NYT, the alleged Hungarian company BAC Consulting was given the contract to produce these devices on behalf of the Taiwanese company Gold Apollo. However, intelligence sources revealed that BAC Consulting In fact, this was a front for an Israeli operation, with at least two other shell companies created to hide the real identities of the people behind the pagers. The revelations point to a high level of sophistication and planning that went into the operation involving Israeli intelligence.
‘Use it or lose it’
These attacks appear to reflect a “use it or lose it” strategy. Reports suggest that Israel’s aim was to detonate the compromised devices before Hezbollah members could discover and discard them. This strategic move was intended to prevent Hezbollah from neutralizing the decoy devices and thus reduce the chances of detecting ongoing surveillance and sabotage by the group.
In response to the outbursts, BAC Consulting has distanced itself from the incident. The company said it had only licensed its brand for use on the AR-924 model pagers, which were produced and sold by BAC. Taiwanese company Gold Apollo also denied any involvement in the actual production of the devices, and said their brand had been misused.
Israel’s Mossad detonates pager in Lebanon over fears of Hezbollah | ‘We were caught…’ | Report
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently expressed dismay at recent events threatening ceasefire efforts between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. He highlighted the urgent need for political will on both sides. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, since the start of the conflict on October 7, 2023, 41,272 Palestinians have died as a result of Israeli military offensive in Gaza, while 95,551 have been injured.
