Roj Bash Kurdistan

Exploding pagers

Hundreds of Lebanese citizens have been injured and transported to hospitals after their pagers blew up

Preliminary reports indicate that hundreds of Lebanese citizens were injured after their portable pager communication devices detonated on Tuesday.

The cyber attack managed to hack the devices, with reports of injuries spreading across several villages in the Lebanese South, Bekaa, and Beirut's southern suburb.

Lebanese security forces confirmed that specific types of wireless devices were targeted, with several sources alleging that an Israeli breach caused the devices to go off and subsequently explode.

The LSF urged civilians to clear the roads for ambulances to ensure the timely and safe transportation of casualties.

The Lebanese Ministry of Health issued an emergency announcement revealing that large numbers of injuries of different ranges are being transported to several hospitals across the targeted areas as a result of the detonation of their devices.

The Ministry called on hospitals to be on maximum alert and full preparedness to provide rapid emergency treatment, as well as to stay in full contact with the ministry to ensure the efficient distribution of injuries amid the influx of casualties.

All individuals owning or holding pager devices were advised to keep them away until the situation is cleared out.

According to the Lebanese Red Cross, over 30 ambulances have been dispatched to respond to the bombings. 50 additional ambulances have been placed on high alert in Mount Lebanon and Beirut to support rescue operations.

Iranian media further reported that the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Beirut, Mojtaba Amani, sustained mild injuries during a device blast in Beirut. He was transported to the hospital to receive treatment.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... njuries-in

8 dead, 2,750+ injured in explosions

The Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad denied rumors circulating regarding the American University of Beirut asking its employees to get rid of their pagers roughly a week ago

Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad has confirmed that 9 martyrs have been killed so far as a result of the explosion of pagers on Tuesday, noting that 2,750 people were injured, including about 200 in critical condition, in 100 hospitals.

An Israeli cyber attack caused the detonation of hundreds of pagers, resulting in mass casualties across several regions in Lebanon, including Beirut, Bekaa, and the south.

Abiad detailed in a press conference that the majority of injuries, in the initial tally he announced, were in the face, eyes, hand, or abdomen.

The minister explained how communication was coordinated between all those concerned to allow for the massive influx of injured people to be taken care of, emphasizing the importance of cooperation with the Hospitals Syndicate.

Abiad denied rumors circulating regarding the American University of Beirut asking its employees to get rid of their pagers roughly a week ago.

The Lebanese Minister of Information, Ziad Makary, spoke at the conference, stressing that the government condemns the Israeli attack, adding that the Israeli attacks are the responsibility of the international community.

The Lebanese Ministry of Health asked hospitals to remain on high alert and raise their preparation level while the Lebanese security forces asked citizens to clear the roads to facilitate the treatment of the injured and their transfer to hospitals

The Ministry issued an appeal to coordinate with the Red Cross to donate blood in anticipation of the need that may arise for blood units for the wounded, calling on citizens, who gather in the streets, to make room for ambulances to move quickly and transport the wounded.

For its part, the Lebanese Red Cross announced the preparation of 50 additional ambulances and 300 emergency medical technicians to help evacuate the injured.

In its first statement, Hezbollah revealed that a security and technical investigation was launched to uncover the causes and reasons behind the simultaneous explosions, noting that health and medical agencies are working to treat those injured across several hospitals.

The Lebanese Resistance bestowed mercy for the souls of the little girl and two Hezbollah members who were martyred in the attacks and wished those injured a speedy recovery.

The Resistance further called on citizens to be cautious and refrain from spreading rumors and misinformation circulated by certain sides as a tool for psychological warfare, which only serves and aids the Israeli occupation, as it continues to threaten with escalations on the northern front.

The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon affirmed its readiness, across all levels and units, to defend Lebanon and its resilient people.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... ns--health

Deadly pager explosions

Nine people, including a child, have been killed after handheld pagers exploded across Lebanon

Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon was among 2,800 other people who were wounded by the simultaneous blasts in Beirut and several other regions.

Is Israel to blame for what it called this criminal aggression.

The UN's spokesman said the latest developments in Lebanon were "extremely concerning, especially given that this is taking place within a context that is extremely volatile".

Many Lebanese were in a state of shock and disbelief on Tuesday evening, unable to get their heads around an event that was unprecedented in scale and nature.

Hezbollah said an unspecified number of pagers exploded at around 15:30 local time (12:30 GMT) in the capital Beirut and many other areas.

One CCTV video showed an explosion in a man’s bag or pocket at a supermarket. He is then seen falling backwards to the ground and crying out in pain as other shoppers run for cover.

Hours later, ambulances were still rushing to hospitals overwhelmed with the number of casualties, 200 of whom the health minister said were in a critical condition. Outside, relatives were waiting in the hope of receiving updates.

The LAU Medical Centre in Beirut's Ashrafieh district closed its main gate and was limiting the number of people getting in. “It’s very sensitive and some scenes are horrific,” one staff member told the BBC.

Most of the wounds were at the level of the waist, face, eyes and hands, he said, adding: “A lot of casualties have lost fingers, in some cases all of them.”

The wife of Iranian ambassador Mojtaba Amani said he was "slightly inured" by one of the explosions and that he was "doing well" in hospital.

The son of Hezbollah MP Ali Ammar and the 10-year-old daughter of a Hezbollah member in the Bekaa Valley were among those killed. Later, the source said the son of another lawmaker, Hassan Fadlallah, was wounded, having initially reported that he was dead.

Fourteen people were also wounded by exploding pagers in neighbouring Syria, where Hezbollah is fighting alongside government forces in the country's civil war, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

“We hold the Israeli enemy fully responsible for this criminal aggression,” Hezbollah said in a statement on Tuesday evening.

“This treacherous and criminal enemy will certainly get his just retribution on this sinful aggression from where it counts and from where it does not count,” it added.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati also blamed Israel for the explosions, saying that they represented a “serious violation of Lebanese sovereignty and a crime by all standards”.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he told his Lebanese counterpart that he "strongly condemned Israeli terrorism".

The US, Israel's closest ally, denied any involvement and urged Iran not to heighten tensions.

Hezbollah did not say what it believed had caused the pagers to explode.

The Wall Street Journal cited a source as saying the affected devices were from a new shipment that Hezbollah had received in recent days. A Hezbollah official also told the newspaper some people had felt the pagers heat up before the blasts.

Overheated lithium-ion batteries can catch fire, but experts said hacking into the pagers and making them overheat would not usually cause such explosions

A former British Army munitions expert, who asked not to be named, told the BBC the pagers would have likely been packed with between 10g and 20g of military-grade high explosive, hidden inside a fake electronic component.

Once armed by a signal, called an alphanumeric text message, the next person to use the device would have triggered the explosive, the expert said.

Lina Khatib, a Middle East analyst at the UK-based Chatham House think tank, told the BBC: "Israel has been engaging in cyber operations against Hezbollah for several months, but this security breach is the largest in scale.”

Nicholas Blanford, a Beirut-based senior fellow of the American think tank the Atlantic Council, said: “Israel in one fell swoop has rendered combat ineffective hundreds if not thousands of Hezbollah fighters, in some cases permanently.”

He warned that Hezbollah's leaders would now “face extreme pressure from the ranks and supporters to retaliate heavily”, describing it as "the most dangerous moment" in the Hezbollah-Israel conflict since October.

A statement put out by the Israeli military on Tuesday evening did not comment on the pager explosions, but said the chief of staff Lt Gen Herzi Halevi had held a situational assessment with commanders "focusing on readiness in both offence and defence in all arenas".

It also said there was no change in defensive guidelines to the Israeli public but asked them to remain alert and vigilant.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd7xnelvpepo

Explosives used in pager attack

can bypass scanning

Security sources speaking to Al Mayadeen report that the blasts, triggered through advanced technology, were designed for maximum harm, and that Israel intentionally committed mass murder

Security sources spoke to Al Mayadeen about the Israeli occupation's terrorist attack which detonated pagers among the Lebanese civilians in the south, Beirut, and the Bekaa regions. The source revealed that Israel used an international company, a civilian device, along with control over the cyber world, and made a decision to deliberately commit mass murder.

Moreover, the sources stressed that "In addition to its unprecedented military crimes in Gaza, Israel has, through this aggression, violated rules prohibited in all security wars."

The sources explained that the material used in the complex operation could bypass all scanning equipment available even in countries and airports around the world as the explosive material is undetectable. In other words, the explosive material is "specially designed for this mission."

Contrary to initial assumptions, it was not the pager batteries that caused the explosions, but the lithium within them that caused the detonation. The blast was triggered through advanced technology, which transmitted a message activating the explosives.

Additionally, the sources revealed that the explosives, often waist-strapped, were intended to cause maximum harm by directly impacting the body. It was noted that pager units that were either turned off or located in areas without coverage did not explode, as well as older pager models.

That being said, the sources then expanded by explaining that the pagers had been "rigged from source via their IC (Integrated Circuit) units," where the explosive material was contained.

In conclusion, the security sources reaffirmed what the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon had stated with certainty hours after the terrorist attack, stating that Israeli Mossad and Military Intelligence (Aman) were behind this aggression.

Ops defending Gaza continue, response inevitable

The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon extended "the highest expressions of congratulations and deepest condolences to the honorable families of the martyrs who fell yesterday," whether from the targeting on the southern front in the towns of Blida and Majdal Selem, or "the martyrs who were killed in the treacherous and widespread aggression through the bombing of communication devices (pagers)."

The statement also wished the wounded a speedy recovery

In a statement issued by Hezbollah's Military Media, the Resistance reaffirmed its commitment to "continue, today as on all previous days, its blessed operations in support of Gaza, its people, and its Resistance, as well as to defend Lebanon, its people, and its sovereignty."

This ongoing effort, they stated, is separate from "the severe reckoning the enemy must face for the massacre it committed on Tuesday against our people, families, and fighters in Lebanon."

The Islamic Resistance emphasized that what happened yesterday will have "a separate and forthcoming reckoning, God willing."

The statement concluded by asserting that this aggression will only strengthen their "determination and resolve to continue on the path of jihad [freedom fighting] and Resistance."

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... g--securit

Explosions erupt in Lebanon, radio receivers targeted

A wave of new explosions erupted in numerous areas in Lebanon as radio receivers were hit in an Israeli attack

Radio receivers, commonly known as walkie-talkies, spontaneously exploded Wednesday in numerous areas in Lebanon in a possible renewed Israeli attack.

The devices, seemingly ICOM V82s, spontaneously detonated, and due to the devices containing highly flammable lithium batteries, the explosions were severe.

The explosions caused massive fires in cars, motorcycles, apartments, and stores all over Lebanon.

The scope of the injuries is yet to be determined

One device even exploded during a funeral procession for an individual martyred in the eerily similar Tuesday attack, with a large crowd gathering around the person carrying it.

It has been reported that at least three people have been martyred as a result of the attacks, with the injuries standing in the dozens.

Citing security sources, Reuters reported that the radios were purchased by Hezbollah around the same time the pagers.

The New York Times, citing US and other officials briefed on the attack, reported that "Israel" planted explosive material in a recent batch of Taiwanese-brand pagers imported to Lebanon, carrying out an operation against Hezbollah.

Pagers ordered by Hezbollah from Gold Apollo were tampered with before arriving in the county, some officials stated. Most pagers were the AR924 models, but the shipment also included three other models from the company, according to NYT.

Taiwanese manufacturer Gold Apollo said the pagers were produced and developed by a European company, CEO Hsu Chin-Kuang said on Wednesday.

"The pagers were both developed and produced abroad, so they have nothing to do with Taiwan," the director was quoted as saying by Taiwanese news portal CTWANT.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... s-targeted

14 killed 450+ injured in second attack

While most injuries are mild, hospitals across Lebanon have been receiving influxes of casualties

Fourteen citizens have been killed and over 450 others were injured in Israel's second terror attack on Lebanon, this time targeting two-way radios, commonly known as walkie-talkies, Al Mayadeen's correspondent announced.

On Wednesday afternoon, a series of explosions were reported across Beirut, South Lebanon, and Bekaa. Cars, motorbikes, stores, and homes across the country caught fire amid the impact of the blasts, resulting in an influx of casualties.

Injuries, most of which were mild, were transported to hospitals in Bekaa, whereas hospitals in Nabatieh and the Lebanese South received tens of others.

In turn, the Lebanese Army urged citizens to refrain from crowding public spaces due to the security operation and to pave the way for ambulances and facilitate their path to the casualties.

The Lebanese Civil Defense also announced that its crews were working on extinguishing the fires resulting from the explosions, as well as transporting injured individuals to hospitals.

Meanwhile, Interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati called for the convention of a UN Security Council session regarding the Israeli attacks on Lebanon, adding that a complaint has already been filed.

"No human can express the brutality of this crime," Mikati said.

Reuters then reported that the Security Council scheduled a meeting on Friday.

The Israeli terror attacks on Tuesday and Wednesday came as the occupation forces bombed the Lebanese South, particularly Jebbayn, Shama, Majdal Zoun, Kfar Kila, Kfar Shouba, Houla, and Taybeh.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... ttack-on-l