At least eight people were killed and 2,750 injured in an attack on Tuesday targeting the pagers of the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Hundreds of handheld pagers exploded nearly simultaneously across Lebanon and parts of Syria.
Lebanon’s Health Minister Firas Abiad said that at least eight people were killed and 2,750 wounded, including 200 in critical condition.
Iranian state media also reported that Mojtaba Amani, the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, was superficially wounded by an exploding pager and is receiving treatment at a hospital.
Hezbollah MP’s Son Among Fatalities
Hezbollah officials stated that the blasts from the group’s newly issued pagers resulted in the deaths of at least two members and a young girl. The explosions also claimed the life of a lawmaker’s son.
“Pagers belonging to employees of various Hezbollah units and institutions exploded,” the Iran-backed militant group said in a statement, adding that the blasts “killed a girl and two of our brothers”.
The group further stated that it is “conducting a wide-ranging security and scientific investigation” into the causes of the “simultaneous” explosions but did not mention Israel.
“We confirm that the resistance at all levels and various units is at the highest level of readiness to defend Lebanon and its steadfast people,” it said.
‘Biggest Security Breach’
A Hezbollah official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the pager detonations as the “biggest security breach” the group has faced in nearly a year of conflict with Israel, as per news agency Reuters.
Several officials have blamed Israel for what seems to be a sophisticated, remote attack amid escalating tensions along the Lebanon border.
However, there was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which has been engaged in conflict with Hezbollah since the October 7 attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas that triggered the Gaza war, marking the worst escalation in years.
Israel has previously used booby-trapped cellphones to kill Hamas militants and is widely believed to have been behind the Stuxnet computer virus attack on Iran’s nuclear program in 2010.
(With inputs from agencies)
Comments
0 comment