Exploding pagers in Lebanon, Syria kill at least 8, thousands injured

Hundreds of pagers exploded almost simultaneously in Lebanon and parts of Syria on Tuesday, killing at least eight people, including members of the militant group Hezbollah and a girl, and wounding the Iranian ambassador, government and Hezbollah officials said.

Officials pointed the finger at Israel in what appeared to be a sophisticated remote attack that wounded more than 2,700 people amid rising tensions on the border with Lebanon. The Israeli military declined to comment.

An anonymous Hezbollah official told The Associated Press that a new type of portable pager used by the organization first overheated and then exploded, killing at least two members and wounding several others.

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Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad said at least eight people had been killed and 2,750 injured, including 200 in critical condition.

Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported that the country’s ambassador, Mojtaba Amani, was superficially wounded in a pager explosion and was in hospital.

Photos and videos from the southern suburbs of Beirut circulating on social media and local media showed people lying on the sidewalk with wounds on their arms or around their pants pockets.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has previously warned members of the organization not to carry cellphones, saying they could be used by Israel to track their movements and carry out targeted attacks.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry has called on all hospitals to be ready to receive patients in emergencies and for those with pagers to step away from them. It has also asked healthcare workers to avoid using wireless devices.

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AP photographers at area hospitals said emergency rooms were overflowing with patients, many with limb injuries and some in serious condition.

The state-run National News Agency said hospitals in southern Lebanon, the eastern Bekaa Valley and the southern suburbs of Beirut – all places where Hezbollah has a strong presence – had appealed to people to donate blood of all types.

The news agency reported that in the southern suburbs of Beirut and other areas, “a portable pager system was detonated using advanced technology, resulting in dozens of injuries.”

A Hezbollah official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media, said the explosions were the result of a “security operation that targeted these devices.”

“The enemy (Israel) is behind this security incident,” the official said, without elaborating. He added that the new pagers carried by Hezbollah members had lithium batteries that apparently exploded.

Lithium batteries, when overheated, can smoke, melt, or even catch fire. Lithium batteries are used in consumer products ranging from cell phones and laptops to electric cars. Lithium battery fires can burn at temperatures of up to 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit.

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The incident comes at a time of heightened tensions between Lebanon and Israel. The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and Israeli forces have clashed almost daily for more than 11 months amid a war between Israel and Hezbollah ally Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The clashes have killed hundreds of people in Lebanon and dozens in Israel, and displaced tens of thousands on both sides of the border. Israel said on Tuesday that halting Hezbollah attacks in the north so that residents can return to their homes is now an official war goal.

Israel has a history of killing Hamas militants by planting explosives in their cellphones, and is widely believed to have been behind the Stuxnet computer virus attack on Iran’s nuclear program in 2010.