Hezbollah radios explode, injuring hundreds in blasts linked to Israel

 

Updated reports indicate that hundreds more people were injured in Lebanon on Wednesday following a second wave of explosions involving communication devices linked to Hezbollah, according to media sources.

Lebanon's National News Agency confirmed that the blasts were caused by walkie-talkies and pagers used by Hezbollah. Some of these explosions occurred inside homes in Beirut, with at least one reported during a funeral.

The latest wave of explosions left nine people dead and 300 injured, adding to the toll from Tuesday's blasts, which had already claimed 12 lives and injured thousands.

Earlier reports on Wednesday suggested that Israel's Mossad agency had planted explosive materials in Hezbollah's pagers, causing the devices to detonate across Lebanon on Tuesday.

The explosions on Tuesday originated from handheld communication devices, leading to chaotic scenes as people were injured while going about their daily activities, including shopping, sitting in cafes, and driving.

Hezbollah is believed to have purchased the hand-held radios and pagers around five months ago, a source told Reuters. The Lebanese government and Hezbollah, a group backed by Iran, accused Israel of orchestrating the attack, which left nearly 3,000 people wounded—many of them Hezbollah fighters.

Israel has not officially commented on the incident, but Israeli and U.S. sources suggested the operation involved explosives hidden within a batch of pagers imported to Lebanon. Reports indicate that the pagers were ordered by Hezbollah from a Taiwanese company, Gold Apollo, which denied involvement, stating that it had licensed its brand to a Hungarian company, BAC Consulting KFT.

According to multiple sources, the operation was months in the making, with the devices being modified during production. About 3,000 pagers exploded simultaneously after receiving a coded message. While these details have not been independently confirmed, the coordinated blasts have heightened tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

Since Hamas' attacks on Israel on October 7, Hezbollah and Israel have engaged in near-daily exchanges of strikes, with Israel targeting senior Hezbollah figures in Lebanon. Amid the escalating conflict, tens of thousands of Israelis living near the Lebanon border have evacuated, while Hezbollah launched fresh rocket attacks on Israeli positions.