Walkie-talkie explosions injure hundreds in Lebanon a day after pager attacks. Here's how the news unfolded
apnews.com
Walkie-talkies and other devices exploded suddenly Wednesday at the site of a funeral for three Hezbollah members and a child killed by exploding pagers the day before. Lebanon’s health ministry says at least nine people were killed and 300 were wounded.

Israel’s army chief says Israel has drawn up plans for additional action against Hezbollah and is ready to strike.

“We have many capabilities that we have not yet activated,” Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said after approving new operational plans at Israel’s Northern Command on Wednesday.

“Every time we work at a certain stage, the next two stages are ready to go forward strongly,” he says. “At each stage, the price for Hezbollah needs to be high.”

  • NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io
    152·
    24 hours ago

    it’s just far more targeted at Hezbollah members since it’s their electronics.

    We need to wait for the numbers before we can say either way, but I certainly doubt it. The EU foreign policy chief has already condemned the attack as indiscriminate.

    • Taiatari@lemmynsfw.comEnglish
      141·
      23 hours ago

      I find it extremely unsettling, this tactic. It could have hit anyone and I think it should be condemned. Just imagine the outcry if Russia should have done that in the Ukraine.

    • girlfreddy@lemmy.caOPEnglish
      3·
      18 hours ago

      Experts generally believe a small mount of stable explosive was carefully implanted into each sabotaged device. Alan Woodward, a professor of cybersecurity at Surrey University, said: “There wouldn’t need to be much explosive, as proximity to a human body means it would cause injury even if it was a few grams.”

      The first wave of explosions – which occurred from about 3.30pm local time on Tuesday – appear to have been triggered by a special message from Hezbollah leadership, implying, Woodward argued, a specific modification of the pagers’ embedded software. This meant it would trigger an explosion when the appropriate message was sent.

      It may have been a default setting on the pagers, but the trigger message came with a cynical twist. Eyewitnesses say the pager bleeped, then paused, then detonated – giving enough time for them to be brought closer to the owner’s face – which is why Lebanese doctors reported treating multiple hand and eye injuries after the blast. Source

    • girlfreddy@lemmy.caOPEnglish
      22·
      21 hours ago

      The Mossad planted explosive devices in the walkie-talkies prior to Hezbollah receiving them so …