A devastating series of explosions targeting Hezbollah members in Lebanon has resulted in the deaths of at least 37 people and injured over 2,900, according to Lebanon’s Health Minister Firass Abiad. The blasts, spanning two days, involved both pagers and walkie-talkies carried by Hezbollah members, including fighters.
On Tuesday, September 17, hundreds of pagers detonated simultaneously in Hezbollah strongholds in south Beirut, eastern Lebanon, and the country’s south. This initial wave resulted in the deaths of 12 people, including two children, and injured 2,323 others.
The following day, Wednesday, September 18, a second wave of explosions occurred, this time involving walkie-talkies. These blasts tragically killed 25 people and injured an additional 608.
Hezbollah has accused Israel of orchestrating the attacks and has vowed to retaliate. While Israel has not commented on the allegations, some Israeli media outlets and experts have suggested that the pager attack bears the hallmarks of Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency known for its covert operations. John Hannah of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America described the pager attack as “another stunning display of Israeli intelligence prowess” and highlighted Mossad’s “repeated ability not only to deeply penetrate its worst adversaries’ most sensitive networks, but then execute operations of exquisite precision and lethality whenever it chooses to do so.”
The explosions have dealt a major blow to Hezbollah, a powerful Iran-backed militant group, and have heightened tensions in the already volatile region. The incident has raised concerns about a potential escalation of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, raising the stakes for regional stability.
