Israeli intelligence operatives planted explosives in thousands of pagers used by the Lebanese group Hezbollah, according to claims made by Lebanese security sources. The allegations come in the wake of explosions that killed nine people and wounded nearly 3,000 others across Lebanon on Tuesday.
A senior Lebanese security source, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the information, alleged that Israel’s Mossad spy agency inserted small amounts of explosives into 5,000 Taiwan-made pagers ordered by Hezbollah months before the detonations.
According to the source, the pagers were manufactured by Taiwan-based Gold Apollo and brought into Lebanon in the spring. The model was identified as an AP924, a device capable of receiving and displaying text messages wirelessly.
The source claimed that approximately 3,000 of these pagers exploded simultaneously when a coded message was sent, activating the hidden explosives. Another security source alleged that up to three grams of explosives were concealed in each new pager, going “undetected” by Hezbollah for months.
Hezbollah, a powerful political and military organization in Lebanon, has vowed to retaliate against Israel but has not officially commented on these specific allegations. The Israeli military has declined to comment on the blasts.
Neither Israel nor Gold Apollo immediately responded to Reuters requests for comment on these allegations.
The incident has been described by one Hezbollah official, speaking anonymously, as the group’s “biggest security breach” since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict between Israel and Hamas on October 7.
Jonathan Panikoff, formerly the U.S. government’s deputy national intelligence officer on the Middle East, stated that if true, this would “easily be the biggest counterintelligence failure that Hezbollah has had in decades.”
The explosions have heightened tensions in a region already strained by ongoing conflicts. Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border exchanges since the start of the Gaza war.
As investigations continue, Lebanese authorities are working to determine the full extent and origin of the explosions. International observers are closely monitoring the situation for any potential escalation in regional conflicts.
It is important to note that these allegations have not been independently verified, and the situation remains fluid as more information becomes available.
