A simultaneous pager explosion killed eight people and injured more than 2,700.
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At around 3:30 p.m. local time on September 18, 2024, a series of pager explosions occurred across Lebanon and Syria, killing at least eight people and injuring more than 2,700. Many of the injured are believed to be members of Hezbollah , a Lebanese Shiite Islamist militant group, and a young girl was reportedly among the dead.
8 dead, 2,700 injured after simultaneous pager explosions in Lebanon | Ars Technica
https://arstechnica.com/security/2024/09/8-dead-2700-injured-after-simultaneous-pager-explosions-in-lebanon/
Pagers Explode Across Lebanon in Apparent Attack on Hezbollah - The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/09/17/world/israel-hamas-war-news
Hezbollah Pagers Explode in Apparent Attack Across Lebanon - WSJ
https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/hundreds-of-hezbollah-operatives-pagers-explode-in-apparent-attack-across-lebanon-cf31cad4
Hezbollah hit by exploding pagers in Lebanon and Syria: At least 9 dead, thousands injured | AP News
https://apnews.com/article/lebanon-hezbollah-israel-exploding-pagers-8893a09816410959b6fe94aec124461b
Hezbollah vows to punish Israel after pager explosions across Lebanon | Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/dozens-hezbollah-members-wounded-lebanon-when-pagers-exploded-sources-witnesses-2024-09-17/
According to local authorities in Lebanon, pager explosions occurred across Lebanon and Syria at approximately 3:30 p.m. local time on September 18, 2024, killing at least eight people and injuring more than 2,700.
Ahmed Ayed, a butcher in the Basta district of Beirut, Lebanon's capital, told The New York Times that he heard an explosion when the incident occurred. Ayed said he witnessed a man in his 20s fall off his motorcycle, and 'we all assumed he had been wounded by random gunfire.' 'A few minutes later, reports of other incidents began to come in, and it became clear that all of the victims had pagers.' In the southern suburbs of Beirut, where many pager explosions occurred, firework-like explosions were also reported coming from people's pockets.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, the latest incident targeted a recently imported Hezbollah pager. Hezbollah has recently warned its members to avoid using mobile phones due to concerns about tracking and assassination. According to the Wall Street Journal, a Hezbollah official said, 'Malware may have caused the explosion,' and 'Someone who felt the pager getting hot disposed of it before it exploded.'
Below is a video capturing the moment a man's pager explodes in his pocket while he's shopping at a supermarket.
The pagers in question are equipped with lithium-ion batteries that can explode after generating a great deal of heat. Because the attack was coordinated, it is possible that the attackers were able to cause the pagers to explode at any time through some sort of firmware hack or supply chain attack.
Hezbollah officials have privately blamed Israel, but Israel has not admitted responsibility for the pager bomb attack.
The widespread pager explosion attack also injured Iran's ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, according to the Associated Press.
The New York Times reported that the device was programmed to beep for several seconds before exploding, according to a government official who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter. The moment of the explosion was captured on several videos, and the pager reportedly appeared to explode suddenly like a small grenade, although Hezbollah officials speculated that the explosion was caused by heat generated by a lithium-ion battery. The cause of the pager's explosion was unknown at the time of writing.
Hezbollah fighters among thousands injured in Lebanon pager attack - YouTube
The Wall Street Journal quoted security analyst Michael Horowitz as saying that there are two possible scenarios for the attack: 'Malware caused the battery to overheat/explode,' or 'An explosive was placed in the device at some point in the supply chain and then detonated remotely.' Horowitz said, 'Either way, this is a very sophisticated attack. Especially if this is a physical intrusion, it would give Israel access to the manufacturers of those devices.'
A former British Army expert explained the cause of the pager bomb attacks by saying: 'The explosive devices were likely to have contained 10 to 20 grams of military-grade high explosives hidden inside fake electronic components. Experts say this was triggered by a signal called an alphanumeric sender ID , which would allow the next person to use the explosive device to detonate the explosives.'
Israel's internal security services say they have thwarted a plot by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to assassinate a former senior defense official in the coming days. In a statement, Israel's internal security services said they had seized an explosive device attached to a remote detonation mechanism using a mobile phone and camera that Hezbollah planned to operate from Lebanon.
During a Department of Defense briefing , spokesman Matthew Miller was asked about the pager bombings in Lebanon and said, 'The United States is not involved in these attacks.'
Continued
14 killed in walkie-talkie explosion believed to have targeted Hezbollah members, Israeli attack?
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