At least 14 killed, 450 injured as second wave of blasts targets Hezbollah devices in Lebanon
Hezbollah has vowed to respond to the pagers attack, which it pinned on Israel, as the two parties continue to exchange fire along the Lebanese-Israeli border.
BEIRUT — Another wave of blasts struck the southern suburbs of Beirut on Wednesday, just one day after a similar attack that saw pagers used by Hezbollah members explode across Lebanon.
Hand-held radios also used by Hezbollah exploded on Wednesday in several areas in Lebanon, local reports said.
Blasts also occurred during a funeral held by Hezbollah in Dahieh for some of those killed in Tuesday’s attack.
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Lebanon's Health Ministry said Wednesday that 14 people have been killed and more than 450 injured in the new wave of explosions.
The Lebanese army has asked citizens to avoid the scenes of the security incidents to allow medical teams to reach the wounded.
Hours before Wednesday’s attack, the Hezbollah group reiterated an earlier vow to “punish” Israel for Tuesday's blasts.
Hezbollah extended its condolences for those killed in the pager explosions, which it described as the “treacherous aggression.” The group vowed to continue its fight against Israel in support of the Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip, where the Israeli offensive has been ongoing for nearly a year now.
“This path is continuous and separate from the difficult reckoning that the criminal enemy must await for its massacre on Tuesday,” the statement added. “This is another reckoning that will come, God willing.”
In an earlier statement issued Tuesday, Hezbollah blamed Israel for the attack adding that it will “undoubtedly receive its just punishment for this sinful aggression.”
On Tuesday at around 3:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. EST), hundreds of pagers detonated simultaneously across the country, particularly in areas known to be Hezbollah strongholds in the southern suburbs of Beirut, the south and the Bekaa region, in what appeared to be a synchronized attack.
At least 12 people were killed, including two children and two medical workers. The son of Hezbollah parliament member Ali Ammar was also among those killed.
In a press conference on Wednesday, the Lebanese Health Minister Firas al-Abyad said between 2,750 and 2,800 others were injured by the blasts, and nearly 300 of them sustained serious injuries. He said 750 are from south Lebanon, 150 from the Bekaa Valley and 1,850 from Beirut.
Among those injured were Iran's ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, as well as two sons of Wafiq Safa, the head of Hezbollah's Liaison and Coordination Unit and the son of another Hezbollah parliament member Hassan Fadlallah. Local media reported late Tuesday that Fadlallah’s son was in surgery, denying earlier reports that he was killed in the attack.
In a series of statements on Wednesday, Hezbollah announced the death of at least 12 of its operatives “on the road to Jerusalem,” a phrase commonly used by the group in reference to its members killed in the latest fight with Israel. The statements did not specify how they were killed, but they seem to include both those killed in the pager blasts and Israeli strikes on Tuesday.
Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah is scheduled to deliver a televised speech on the attack on Thursday at 5:00 p.m. local time (10:00 a.m. EST).
Why Hezbollah uses pagers
Israel has yet to comment on the attack. Earlier on Tuesday, high-level intelligence regional sources told Al-Monitor’s Gabrielle Debinski and Tyler Huffman that Israel carried out the operation upon intelligence that two members of Hezbollah caught wind that the pagers had been compromised.
Meanwhile, Reuters cited a Lebanese security source as saying Wednesday that the Mossad spy agency had planted explosives in 5,000 pagers brought to Lebanon by Hezbollah from Taiwan-based company Gold Apollo.
Gold Apollo founder Hsu Ching-Kuang denied that his company was responsible for manufacturing the pagers that exploded in Lebanon. He told reporters that a Hungary-based company named BAC, which has a license to use Gold Apollo’s brand, was behind the production of these specific pagers.
Hezbollah said in a statement issued after the attack Tuesday that the pagers that exploded belonged to “employees of various Hezbollah units and institutions.”
The paramilitary group had advised its members to switch to wireless communication devices several months ago to prevent Israel from tracking their movement. Back in February, Nasrallah warned his fighters in south Lebanon to get rid of their mobile phones, which he said were spying devices used by Israel to gather specific and “deadly” information.
Tuesday’s attack came hours after Shin Bet said it foiled an attempt by Hezbollah to assassinate an unnamed former senior Israeli official using a remotely detonated explosive. According to the agency, the attack was expected to be carried out in the coming days.
Iran-backed Hezbollah has been engaged in heavy cross-border fire with Israel since Oct. 8. The group says its fight on the border is in support of Hamas, which launched a surprise assault on southern Israel Oct. 7 prompting a major air and ground offensive in the Gaza Strip.
This developing story has been updated since initial publication.
