Exploding pagers belonging to Hezbollah kill 8 and injure more than 2,700 in Lebanon

The militant group Hezbollah said Tuesday that pagers belonging to its members had blown up across Lebanon, killing at least eight and injuring more than 2,700, according to the country’s Health Ministry.

Iran-backed Hezbollah pinned the blame for the widespread and seemingly simultaneous blasts on Israel, without providing evidence for its claim. Israel did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the accusations and the pager explosions.

More than 200 people were in critical condition after the blasts, Public Health Minister Dr. Firas Abiad told reporters.

Amid what was developing into a nationwide health emergency, Lebanese officials ordered the public to avoid using handheld communication devices.

Mojtaba Amani, Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, was among those injured, according to the country’s embassy. In an post on X, it described his injuries as “superficial,” and added that Amani was in a good condition.

Hezbollah said in its own statement that explosions had killed “a girl and two brothers.”

It added that the blasts had come from pagers belonging to “employees in various Hezbollah units and institutions.”

Hezbollah says it has handed out pagers to members, many of whom stopped using cellphones out of fear that Israel could use the devices to track and monitor them.

“The ministry requests all citizens who own wireless communication devices to stay away from them until the truth of what is happening is revealed,” the National News Agency quoted the Health Ministry as saying.

It was unclear whether the explosions were part of a coordinated attack, which would represent a significant security breach for Hezbollah.

Lebanon’s Red Cross said it deployed 130 ambulances to respond to explosion injuries, with an additional 170 vehicles on standby. The country’s civil emergency authority urges citizens to donate blood at hospitals “as soon as possible,” state news reported.

The news agency Reuters reported that dozens of Hezbollah members were seriously wounded in Lebanon’s south and in the southern suburbs of the country’s capital, Beirut.

A Reuters journalist saw 10 Hezbollah members bleeding from wounds in the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh, the agency said. It was unclear how many civilians had been affected.

As of late Tuesday afternoon local time, no one had taken responsibility for the explosions, some of which appeared to have been captured on CCTV video and shared on social media.

In a second statement, Hezbollah said it had reviewed “all the facts” and information and held Israel responsible for the explosions, which occurred a day after Israel announced a new war objective, fueling fears of a new military offensive in Lebanon.

Israel also warned the US that “military action” would likely be the only way to address mounting hostilities with Hezbollah.

Late Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that his security Cabinet had updated its list of war objectives to include the safe return of residents who have been displaced from their homes near the northern border due to months of fighting with Hezbollah.

“Israel will continue to act to implement this objective,” the prime minister’s office said.

Thousands of people have been displaced on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border in the months since Israel began an offensive in Gaza began following the Hamas-led Oct. 7 terrorist attacks. Hezbollah has vowed to continue attacks until Israel’s assault on Gaza ends.

Israeli tensions with Hezbollah, a powerful militia and political party that formed in 1986 and rose to power after Israel invaded southern Lebanon in pursuit of Palestinian Liberation Organization fighters, spiraled during the war in Gaza.

Last month, Israel struck Lebanon with what it said were pre-emptive strikes to prevent plans by Hezbollah to launch a widespread assault across the countries’ shared border.

The attacks came weeks after a top Hezbollah commander, Fouad Shukur, was assassinated by Israel. Hezbollah sought revenge in by launching a drone attack on Israel’s Glilot base, which is near Tel Aviv.

International diplomats, particularly those from the US and France, have been working for months to de-escalate the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel in an effort to contain the war in Gaza.