In a bold move, Iran-backed Hezbollah attacked Israeli artillery positions with rockets on Wednesday, marking its first direct strike against its long-time adversary since a series of explosive blasts rocked Lebanon. These blasts, caused by hidden explosives in pagers used by Hezbollah members, have raised concerns of a larger-scale conflict erupting in the Middle East.
The pagers, reportedly imported months before the explosions, were rigged by Israel’s Mossad, according to a senior Lebanese security official. Tuesday’s blasts, which Hezbollah called a “massacre,” left 12 people dead, including two children, and injured nearly 3,000, many of whom were Hezbollah fighters.
Lebanon’s Health Minister Firass Abiad confirmed the casualties and revealed that Iran’s envoy to Beirut was also injured in the attack. The death toll continues to rise as the Middle East braces for the possibility of full-scale war between Hezbollah and Israel.
Hezbollah’s Response and Rising Tensions
In the aftermath of the attack, Hezbollah fired rockets at Israeli artillery positions, stating they would continue to support Hamas in Gaza and promising retaliation for the attack. One Hezbollah official described the detonation of the explosive-laden pagers as the group’s “biggest security breach” to date. The group emphasized it aims to avoid an all-out war but faces growing pressure from its supporters for a stronger military response.
Mohanad Hage Ali of the Carnegie Middle East Center noted the delicate position Hezbollah finds itself in, trying to balance its retaliatory stance while avoiding the escalation of violence into a full-blown war.
Mossad’s Sophisticated Plot Unveiled
The explosive attack on Hezbollah was the result of an intricate Mossad operation that targeted the group’s communication devices. Pagers were chosen for their low-tech nature, which Hezbollah had been using in an effort to avoid Israel’s location-tracking technology. Mossad reportedly planted explosives inside the devices during their production, sending a coded message to detonate them simultaneously.
Sources suggest that around 3,000 pagers exploded on Tuesday, unleashing devastation on Hezbollah ranks. Mossad, notorious for high-profile espionage missions, has not commented on the operation, though its involvement in the assassination of senior Hezbollah and Hamas commanders during the ongoing Gaza conflict has been widely speculated.
READ ALSO – Pager Explosions in Lebanon Leave Three Dead, Over 1,000 Wounded in Major Security Breach Amid Ongoing Hezbollah-Israel Conflict
Hezbollah’s Use of Pagers Backfires
The explosive pagers, identified as model AR-924, were part of an order of 5,000 devices. Manufactured by Taiwanese company Gold Apollo, the pagers were later modified at the production level by Mossad to include small amounts of explosives. The incident has shaken Hezbollah’s leadership, raising questions about the group’s security vulnerabilities.
A representative from Gold Apollo denied the company’s involvement in the manufacturing of the compromised devices, instead pointing to a European company, BAC Consulting, as the supplier. BAC’s CEO has yet to comment on the allegations.
Middle East on the Brink of War
The explosive attacks have heightened tensions across the region, with Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi accusing Israel of pushing the Middle East to the brink of a regional war. The crisis could lead to further destabilization as Hezbollah, Iran’s most powerful proxy in the region, weighs its next steps.
The blasts, compounded by the volatile political and military landscape, have brought the region closer to the possibility of an expanded conflict, with both Hezbollah and Israel on high alert.