Pagers Explode in Lebanon, Injuring Hundreds of Members of Hezbollah

Pagers across Lebanon used by Hezbollah exploded on Tuesday, killing eight and injuring more than 2,700 people according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. Videos of the explosions flooded social media. Reuters confirmed the attack through an anonymous source connected to Hezbollah. The anonymous source told Reuters the attack was the “biggest security breach” of Hezbollah’s information system they’d ever seen. A journalist on the scene also witnessed ambulances rushing the wounded to hospitals and several people said the pagers had continued to explode minutes after the initial attack.

The attack seems centered on Hezbollah and early reports indicate that the attack has hit fighters, medics, and even a diplomat. The Iranian news agency Mehr reported that Mojtaba Amani, the country’s ambassador to Lebanon, was injured.

Hezbollah told the Wall Street Journal that many of the explosions were concentrated in southern Lebanon in and around Beirut.

“Clearly the number will be in the hundreds of casualties,” Firas Abiad, Lebanon’s Health Minister, told the Wall Street Journal. “A lot of patients are in the emergency sections of hospitals in most parts of the country, and the health apparatus is working on triaging these cases.”

After talking to the Journal, Abiad confirmed eight people had died and 2,750 were wounded.

Video and images of the explosions flooded social media in the hour after the attack. In one video, a man is shopping for food at a grocery store when something in his pocket explodes and he lands on the ground, calling out in pain. In another, a man is checking out at a store and he sets his pager down on the counter. It explodes, injuring him and sending the clerk running. It’s unclear how much collateral damage there’s been from the attacks.

Footage of the moment when Israel remotely hacked into Hezbollah’s unique communication devices and blew them up throughout Lebanon today. pic.twitter.com/fL74b7eyQO

— Clash Report (@clashreport) September 17, 2024

According to the Wall Street Journal, the exploding pagers were part of a recent shipment meant for Hezbollah fighters. Hundreds of them had the devices and a Hezbollah official speculated that they’d been infected by malware. Some people felt the pagers get hot before the explosion and got rid of them before the attack. Criminals and military organizations sometimes use pagers because they’re perceived as more secure than more traditional methods of communication like a smartphone.

The people behind the attack aren’t known, but Lebanon shares a border with Israel, and Hezbollah has been launching rockets into the country since October 7. Sneaking explosives into the pocket of an enemy is the kind of thing Israel does. In July, Israel assassinated a Hamas leader in Tehran, Iran with a remotely detonated package. A Mossad agent had, somehow, managed to plant the explosive device in his bedroom.

Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attacks in Lebanon nor has it given a comment to any media outlet.