Beirut: Nine people have died and over 2,800 injured in Lebanon following a synchronized detonation of pagers targeting US-designated terror group Hezbollah. Iran’s state media reported that its Ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, has also been wounded in the incident. The explosions occurred at around 3:30 pm local time in Lebanon (6 pm IST). Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad confirmed that nine people were killed and around 2,800 were injured, with more than 200 of them critically injured. The injuries were mostly on the face, hands, and stomach.
A 10-year-old daughter of a Hezbollah member was killed in east Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. An independent war monitor has said that fourteen people have also been injured in pager blasts in Syria. Hezbollah, which is banned both by the United States and the European Union, is the political and military establishment in Lebanon and is backed by Iran. Hezbollah backs Hamas, which has been at war with Israel in Gaza since October 2023.
Some reports claim that the explosions were caused due to the overheating of lithium batteries caused by an electronic signal breach, while others allege that a thin lining of explosives were placed inside the pagers before being supplied. Hezbollah has blamed Israel for the attack and has claimed that this is the “biggest security breach” it has faced yet. All the pagers exploded nearly the same time, the Hezbollah has claimed, saying that this is an “Israeli breach” of its communications network.
The explosions happened outside Lebanon as well, as four people were injured in Syria as at least one pager blew up in a vehicle in Damascus. Hezbollah has called it “an unprecedented enemy security incident” with “handheld pagers detonating” at nearly the same time across Lebanon. Lebanon’s official National News Agency called it “an unprecedented enemy security incident.”
Hezbollah put out a statement shortly after the pager explosions, urging people to be “cautious of rumors and misinformation spread by certain parties, as this may serve the psychological warfare” by Israel. Israel has not yet responded to these claims made by Hezbollah or Iran.
