War in the Middle East: Hundreds of pagers explode in Lebanon – what’s behind it?

Hundreds of small so-called pagers explode simultaneously in Lebanon. Almost 2,800 people are injured. Among the injured are many members of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, but also civilians. At least 12 people are killed, including two children. Some victims had to have their arms or fingers removed as a result of more serious injuries. The Shiite organization blames Israel for the alleged coordinated attack. Israel remains silent. The most important questions and answers:

Who is Hezbollah?

The Shiite organization Hezbollah was founded in 1982 with Iranian support in response to the Israeli invasion during the civil war in Lebanon. Since then, it has fought against Israel politically, but also with violence. Hezbollah is also represented in the Lebanese parliament. Today, it is considered an influential political force in a country with a generally weak and thoroughly corrupt state. It is also a social service provider, running its own hospitals and schools, among other things. Its power is based, among other things, on its own militia, with which it controls entire areas, including the region bordering Israel.

Why is Hezbollah shelling Israel?

Hezbollah’s declared aim is resistance against its arch-enemy Israel. Since the beginning of the Gaza war almost a year ago, it says it has acted in solidarity with the Islamist Hamas in the contested coastal strip. Both belong to Iran’s so-called “Axis of Resistance” – an alliance against the common enemy Israel. Like other militias in the Axis of Resistance, Hezbollah will only stop its attacks against Israel when the “aggression against Gaza and the Palestinian people” is stopped. In return, Israel repeatedly attacks targets in Lebanon.

Israel wants to use military and diplomatic pressure to force the Hezbollah militia to withdraw behind the Litani River, 30 kilometers from the border – as required by UN Resolution 1701.

What do we know about the exploded pagers?

The small radio receivers, known as pagers, bore the Apollo logo. The Taiwan-based company has denied any connection to the incident. When asked, Gold Apollo said that a company based in Hungary had designed and manufactured the devices. According to security sources, many of the pagers came from a shipment that had recently arrived in Lebanon. The New York Times reported, citing government officials, that Israeli agents had previously intercepted the devices and loaded them with small amounts of explosives and a code. The devices were then detonated using this code.

Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah and his supporters have long feared that the use of smartphones could make them easy targets for the Israeli military or intelligence services to track them down. They have been using small pagers for communication for years because they are more difficult to track.

Who is behind the pager explosions?

Hezbollah and its most important ally Iran, as well as the Lebanese government, blame Israel for the alleged coordinated attack. Israel has not yet made an official statement. However, such a technically sophisticated attack bears the hallmarks of Israel’s secret services, which have carried out similarly complex attacks on several occasions, for example to kill high-ranking enemies.

In 1996, Hamas military chief and bomb maker Yihia Ayash was killed by explosives in his cell phone, detonated by a remote call. Israel was – as far as is known – the first country to use a communications device for an assassination, wrote Israeli intelligence expert Ronen Bergman. Communications devices may also have been crucial in the killing of Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr and Hamas foreign chief Ismail Haniya in Tehran, which were attributed to Israel, for example to determine the location of the victims.

If it was Israel, what was their purpose?

Israel’s army and Hezbollah have been trading heavy fire since the beginning of the Gaza war. With this attack, which experts describe as unprecedented, Israel can once again demonstrate its technological superiority over Hezbollah. If the militia responds to Israel with a large rocket barrage, it would only prove that it is not capable of such a sophisticated attack itself. Former CIA officer Robert Baer told CNN that the attack was “devastating for Hezbollah” and at the same time demonstrated Israel’s exceptional technical and intelligence capabilities.

According to experts, Israel has apparently tried to hit as many Hezbollah members as possible “in a targeted manner” without causing any harm to civilians. Israel has repeatedly accused the organization – like Hamas in the Gaza Strip – of hiding behind civilians. However, according to Lebanese sources, there are also civilians among the victims.

Overall, Israel’s aim in the conflict with Hezbollah is to expel its fighters from the border area so that Israeli residents can return to the north of the country – by diplomatic means or, if necessary, by force.

How is Hezbollah reacting now?

Experts believe the attack on the communication devices of many Hezbollah members is a severe blow to the militia, which is also likely to weaken its fighting spirit. One of its most important means of communication is now disrupted or no longer usable. Hezbollah has vowed revenge for Israel’s “sinful aggression”. Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah announced a speech for Thursday afternoon.

Hezbollah finds itself in a familiar and at the same time challenging situation, writes the Lebanese news site “L’Orient Today”. It is under pressure to respond to this major attack, similar to the case after the killing of Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut. Violent military retaliation could therefore provide Israel with the pretext to start a full-scale war, which at least Hezbollah actually wants to avoid.