Death toll from exploding gadgets rises in Lebanon as Israel steps up war talk

The death toll in a series of two-way radio and pager explosions in Lebanon this week has risen to 37, local authorities said, adding to the devastation caused by a wave of suspected Israeli attacks on Hezbollah militants.

A second wave of explosions on Wednesday killed 25 people and wounded more than 600, Lebanon’s health ministry said. Some of the blasts occurred at funerals for Hezbollah members who died the previous day when thousands of pagers — most of them owned by the Iranian-backed group — exploded in supermarkets, streets and homes across the country. The nearly simultaneous blasts killed two children and wounded some 2,300 people.

The attacks have raised fears of a full-blown war between Hezbollah and Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the operations. Israel has sent more troops to its northern border with Lebanon in recent days, with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announcing a “new phase” in the country’s fight against Islamist militant groups.

While there are few signs that an invasion of Lebanon is imminent, Israeli officials have increasingly said that diplomacy with Hezbollah is failing and that Israel will be forced to act more aggressively to keep the group’s fighters and weapons away from its border.

Israel continues to fight Hamas in the Gaza Strip, with ceasefire talks at an impasse. But the intensity of the conflict is decreasing as the Palestinian militant group suffers mounting losses. Like Hezbollah, Hamas is backed by Iran and is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S.

“The center of gravity is shifting north, which means we are directing forces, resources and energy to the northern arena,” Gallant said at an air base in northern Israel.

Hezbollah is the most powerful of the regional groups fighting Israel, with tens of thousands of fighters and at least as many missiles and rockets, according to Israeli intelligence estimates. Many Israelis fear the group could overwhelm their country’s vaunted air defenses if it escalates.

The two sides have exchanged fire since the Gaza war broke out in October, though they have largely limited their attacks to military targets, usually near the border area. Hezbollah says it is acting in solidarity with Hamas and will not stop its attacks until Israel agrees to a ceasefire in the territory.

It is unclear how much this year’s explosions in Lebanon have damaged Hezbollah’s fighting capacity. The group has vowed to retaliate, and its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, is due to give a speech on Thursday.

In any case, the operations were extremely embarrassing for Hezbollah and may have been intended to deal a psychological blow to the group. Israeli analysts say the explosions are likely to disrupt communications for the Shiite organization’s leaders and commanders, as they fear more of their facilities have been sabotaged.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said his country would file a complaint against Israel with the United Nations and asked the UN Security Council, which is due to meet on Friday to discuss the situation, to pass a resolution aimed at stopping Israel from carrying out such attacks.

The prime minister and House of Representatives Speaker Nabih Berri, Hezbollah’s main political ally in Lebanon, received phone calls from French President Emmanuel Macron, the state-run National Press Agency reported.

Hezbollah members often use pagers and walkie-talkies—gadgets considered obsolete in much of the world—because they were considered more difficult for Israeli security services to infiltrate due to their low-tech nature. There is much speculation about how the blasts were orchestrated—but many cybersecurity experts say the explosives were likely placed inside the devices.

Iran, whose ambassador to Lebanon was injured in explosions on Tuesday, threatened retaliation against Israel.

Tens of thousands of civilians have been forced from their homes in southern Lebanon and northern Israel by the skirmishes. Israel made the return of its citizens an official war goal on Monday. Many officials say an invasion of southern Lebanon is needed to push back Hezbollah militants.

The United States is trying to ease tensions and is appealing to Israel not to escalate its attacks to the point of all-out war.

—With assistance from Dan Williams.