Following the deadly explosions in Lebanon involving hand-held radios used by Hezbollah, Turkey is reviewing its security measures for communication devices used by its armed forces. These explosions, which occurred on Wednesday across Lebanon’s south, were the deadliest since cross-border fighting erupted between Hezbollah and Israel nearly a year ago. The incident has heightened tensions in the region, especially after similar explosions involving Hezbollah’s pagers the day before.
The blasts, which appear to have thrown Hezbollah, Iran’s most powerful proxy in the Middle East, into disarray, have also fueled concerns about a potential escalation and regional war. This comes amidst Israel’s ongoing 11-month-old war against Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza.
While Turkish military exclusively uses domestically-produced equipment, a Turkish defence ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Ankara has additional control mechanisms in place if a third party is involved in the procurement or production of communication devices.
“Whether in the operations we carry out, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and as with the Lebanon example, measures are reviewed and new measures are being developed as part of the lessons learned following each development,” the official said. “In the context of this incident, we as the Defence Ministry are carrying out the necessary examinations,” the person added.
The official statement emphasizes Turkey’s commitment to reassessing its communication security protocols in light of the recent events. The incident has also sparked discussions about the need for a dedicated cyber-security agency. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told state-owned Anadolu news agency that establishing such an agency is on the government’s agenda, with President Tayyip Erdogan viewing it as a necessity.
Sources indicate that Tuesday’s explosions involving Hezbollah’s pagers were remotely triggered by Israeli spies who planted explosives in an order of 5,000 pagers before they entered Lebanon. This incident highlights the escalating security concerns in the region and the need for robust communication security measures to prevent future attacks.
