Lebanon faced another day of deadly explosions on Wednesday as hand-held radios used by Hezbollah fighters detonated across various regions, including Lebanon's southern areas, the suburbs of Beirut, and the Bekaa Valley.
Lebanon faced another day of deadly explosions on Wednesday as hand-held radios used by Hezbollah fighters detonated across various regions, including Lebanon's southern areas, the suburbs of Beirut, and the Bekaa Valley.
Lebanon faced another day of deadly explosions on Wednesday as hand-held radios used by Hezbollah fighters detonated across various regions, including Lebanon's southern areas, the suburbs of Beirut, and the Bekaa Valley. This follows a series of blasts the day before, where thousands of pagers belonging to Hezbollah members exploded, raising fears of escalating tensions with Israel.
The explosions come amid a deeply unstable situation in Lebanon, where Hezbollah has been at the forefront of the nation's political and military landscape. The simultaneous detonations have shaken the group and resulted in tragic losses.
According to Lebanon's health ministry, Wednesday's blasts claimed 14 lives and injured 450 more, adding to the already high toll from Tuesday's pager detonations. Tuesday’s explosions had killed 12 individuals, including two children, and left nearly 3,000 people injured. The incidents have been described as one of the worst security breaches in Hezbollah's history, leaving the group scrambling to respond to the scale of the attack.
One of the explosions on Wednesday occurred near a funeral organized by Hezbollah to honor those who had died in Tuesday's blasts. In the southern suburbs of Beirut, a Reuters reporter observed Hezbollah members hurriedly removing batteries from walkie-talkies that had not yet exploded and disposing of them in metal containers. Lebanon's Red Cross responded with 30 ambulance teams across different areas, including the southern region and the Bekaa Valley, where multiple explosions were reported.
Hezbollah, which had been thrown into disarray by the pager detonations, retaliated against Israeli artillery positions on Wednesday. This marked their first strike against Israel since the explosions, significantly raising concerns that the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel could expand into a broader Middle Eastern war. The Israeli military confirmed that warning sirens had gone off multiple times in northern Israel, though there were no reports of casualties or damage.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the situation was shifting, with the war's center of gravity moving towards the northern border shared with Lebanon. He hinted at the possibility of escalating military activity, with Israeli troops and resources being deployed in greater numbers to counter Hezbollah.
Sources from the Lebanese security community have pointed to Israel’s Mossad as being behind the sophisticated attacks. Mossad, known for its extensive history of conducting operations on foreign soil, allegedly planted the explosives in both the pagers and the hand-held radios used by Hezbollah months before the detonations occurred. According to sources, the devices had been purchased by Hezbollah five months ago.
Images of the exploded walkie-talkies examined by Reuters revealed internal components labeled with the name "ICOM," a Japanese manufacturer of radio communication devices. One of the models, the IC-V82, closely matched the exploded devices and was discontinued in 2014. There has been no immediate response from ICOM regarding the issue, although it remains unclear how these devices found their way into Hezbollah’s hands.
Tuesday’s attacks caused devastating injuries, with frontline workers describing hospitals being flooded with victims. Many arrived with severe injuries, including missing eyes and fingers, while others had internal organs protruding. Hezbollah fighters and Iran’s envoy to Beirut were among those injured.
The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, has called for an independent investigation into the blasts, urging clarity on the events surrounding the explosions. Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council will meet on Friday to discuss the incidents at the request of Algeria, representing the Arab states. The council's September president, Slovenia's U.N. Ambassador Samuel Zbogar, confirmed the meeting.
The explosions and subsequent retaliation have increased concerns over the potential for a wider Middle Eastern conflict. Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi has accused Israel of dangerously escalating tensions in the region, pushing the area closer to war on multiple fronts. Hezbollah, Iran's most powerful proxy in the Middle East, vowed continued support for Hamas in Gaza and warned that Israel should prepare for further retaliation over the pager "massacre."
Hezbollah’s response is also influenced by internal pressures from its supporters and the broader Lebanese population. With hundreds injured or killed and entire communities affected by the detonations, Hezbollah faces growing calls for a more forceful response to Israel. However, a full-scale war would have catastrophic consequences for Lebanon, which is already reeling from a series of crises, including the financial collapse in 2019 and the Beirut port blast in 2020.
Wednesday’s explosions represent the biggest security breach in Hezbollah’s history. The attacks follow a series of assassinations of Hezbollah and Hamas commanders, which have been attributed to Israel since the start of the Gaza conflict last October. Hezbollah had turned to using pagers and other low-tech devices, such as walkie-talkies, in an effort to evade Israeli surveillance of mobile phones, but these attempts were ultimately undermined by the explosive-laden devices.
As tensions remain high, Hezbollah’s next moves could shape the future of the Middle East. The group has vowed to seek justice for its fallen fighters and has already taken steps to retaliate against Israeli positions. Whether this escalation leads to a wider regional conflict involving key players like Iran and the U.S. remains to be seen.
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