Lebanon pagers explosion LIVE: Hezbollah says 8 killed, 2,750 injured; Iran’s Ambassador to Lebanon injured in blast

Hezbollah chief Nasrallah not harmed in the blasts, the group says; Hezbollah official says it was the “biggest security breach” the group had suffered in nearly a year of war with Israel

Updated - September 17, 2024 11:44 pm IST

Lebanese soldiers stand guard at a street that leads to the American University hospital where they bring wounded people whose handheld pager exploded, in Beirut, Lebanon on September 17, 2024. | Photo Credit: AP

At least nine people were killed and almost 2,750 people, including Iran’s ambassador, were injured in Beirut’s suburbs and other parts of Lebanon, and in some parts of Syria, after their handheld pagers exploded today (September 17, 2024). At least 200 of them are critically wounded.

Hezbollah, in a statement, blamed Israel for the explosions and said that it will get its “fair share of punishment”.

Earlier, Hezbollah confirmed at least two of its members and a girl were killed in the explosions. The group said in a statement that it was carrying out an investigation to determine the causes of the blasts.

Also Read: Exploding pagers injure hundreds in Lebanon: Health Minister

A senior military intelligence official and an official with a Lebanese group with knowledge of the situation, both of whom spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said that pagers carried by Hezbollah members were detonated. The second official said it was believed to be an Israeli attack.

Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency, close to the country’s powerful Revolutionary Guard, said on its Telegram channel that Mojtaba Amani, Iran’s ambassador in Lebanon, has a superficial injury and is under observation at a hospital.

Meanwhile, another semi-official Mehr news agency, also on its Telegram channel reported that Amani was wounded by a pager explosion.

Also Read: Hezbollah goes old-school to counter Israel’s modern surveillance methods

Photos and videos from Beirut’s southern suburbs circulating on social media and in local media showed people lying on the pavement with wounds on their hands or near their pants pockets.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah previously warned the group’s members not to carry cellphones, saying that they could be used by Israel to track their movements and to carry out targeted strikes.

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Dozens wounded after pagers detonate in Lebanon, media and security officials say

Dozens of people, including Iran’s ambassador, were wounded in Beirut’s suburbs and other parts of Lebanon after their handheld pagers exploded Tuesday, according to media reports and security officials. It wasn’t immediately clear if people were killed.

Photos and videos from Beirut’s southern suburbs circulating on social media and in local media showed people lying on the pavement with wounds on their hands or near their pants pockets.

A Hezbollah official said that at least 150 people, including members of the group, were wounded in different parts of Lebanon when the pagers they were carrying exploded. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said the explosions were the result of “a security operation that targeted the devices.”

- AP

September 17, 2024 23:44
U.S urges Iran to avoid furthering ‘tensions’ after Hezbollah pager blasts
The United States on Tuesday urged Iran to avoid actions that further raise tensions after mass explosions of pagers used by Lebanese ally Hezbollah in which Tehran’s ambassador was injured.
“We would urge Iran not to take advantage of any incident to try to add further instability and to further increase tensions in the region,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters, as suspicion fell on Israel.
- AFP
September 17, 2024 23:23
What type of pager exploded in Lebanon?
Images of destroyed pagers analysed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo, a Taiwan-based pager manufacturer.
The firm did not immediately reply to questions from Reuters. Hezbollah did not reply to questions from Reuters on the make of the pagers.
Hezbollah fighters had begun using pagers as a low-tech means to try and avoid Israeli tracking of their locations, two sources familiar with the group’s operations told Reuters earlier this year.
Three security sources told Reuters that the pagers that detonated were the latest model brought in by Hezbollah in recent months.
- Reuters
September 17, 2024 23:03
Death toll reaches 9 in Lebanon and Syria
The death toll reached nine after the pagers explosion in parts of Lebanon and Syria and wounding several thousand, officials said.
The Israeli military has declined to comment. The explosions came hours after Israel’s internal security agency said it had foiled an attempt by Hezbollah to kill a former senior Israeli security official using a planted explosive device that could be remotely detonated.
Experts said the pager explosions showed signs of being a long-planned operation – though the means were not immediately known. Investigators had no immediate word on how the pagers were detonated or if explosives had somehow been sneaked into each pager.
Hezbollah said in a statement that two of its members were among those killed. The Hezbollah official who spoke anonymously identified one of the dead as Ali Ammar, the son of one of the group’s members in the Lebanese parliament.
- AP
September 17, 2024 22:51
‘Reckless’, ‘indistinguishable from terrorism’: Edward Snowden
Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency contractor and whistleblower who fled to Russia, calls the attack “reckless” and “indistinguishable from terrorism”.
September 17, 2024 22:34
War monitor says 14 wounded in Syria in Hezbollah pager blasts
Fourteen people were wounded in Syria when pagers used by Hezbollah exploded, a Britain-based war monitor said, adding to a toll of at least eight dead and 2,750 wounded in Lebanon.
“Fourteen people whose nationalities are unknown have been wounded in Damascus and its countryside after pagers used by Hezbollah exploded,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. A source close to Hezbollah told AFP that some of its members had been wounded in pager blasts in neighbouring Syria, without specifying how many.
- AFP
September 17, 2024 22:19
U.N. concerned by Lebanon developments, especially given ‘volatile’ context
Developments in Lebanon are extremely concerning, especially given the “extremely volatile” context, said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric today, adding that the U.N. deplores any civilian casualties.
- Reuters
September 17, 2024 21:54
Hezbollah chief Nasrallah not harmed in blasts, group says
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was not harmed in the spree of pager blasts across Lebanon, a senior Hezbollah according to sources.
- Reuters
September 17, 2024 21:34
Hezbollah blames Israel for attack
Lebanon’s Hezbollah blames Israel for pages exploding in Beirut and its suburbs. The group, in a statement, says Israel will its “fair punishment”.
- Reuters
September 17, 2024 21:10
Lebanon says 8 killed, 2,750 wounded by exploding pagers
Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad said eight people were killed and some 2,750 wounded in pager explosions across the country, with Hezbollah earlier saying the pagers were used by its members.
The blasts “killed eight people, including a girl”, he told a televised press conference. “About 2,750 people were injured... more than 200 of them critically” with injuries mostly reported to the face, hands and stomach, he added.
- AFP
September 17, 2024 21:08
Watch | What’s Hezbollah, and why is the militia permanently at war with Israel ?
Watch: What’s Hezbollah, and why is the militia permanently at war with Israel?
A look at the history of Hezbollah, the militia group from Lebanon
September 17, 2024 21:05
Hezbollah goes old-school to counter Israel’s modern surveillance methods
Hezbollah goes old-school to counter Israel’s modern surveillance methods
Hezbollah adapts to evade Israeli surveillance with low-tech tactics, including coded messages and landline phones, amid escalating tensions.
Coded messages, landline phones, and pagers: following the killing of senior commanders in targeted Israeli airstrikes, the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group, Hezbollah, has been using some low-tech strategies to try to evade its foe’s sophisticated surveillance technology, informed sources said.
September 17, 2024 20:53
Hezbollah says 3 killed in Lebanon pager blasts
Sources closer to Hezbollah said that a son of a Hezbollah MP was killed in the Lebanon pager blast.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah says that three people have been killed so far in the ‘mysterious’ explosion. The group also said that it is investigating the blasts.
- AFP, Reuters
September 17, 2024 20:47
Girl in Lebanon killed by exploding pager, family says
The 10-year-old daughter of a Hezbollah member was killed in Lebanon’s east when his pager exploded today, her family and a source close to the group said. “A 10-year-old girl was martyred in the Bekaa Valley after her father’s pager exploded while he was next to her,” her relatives said. A source close to the group confirmed her death, the first to be reported after exploding paging devices injured hundreds of Hezbollah members across Lebanon. - AFP
September 17, 2024 20:46
Iran ambassador to Lebanon wounded in pager explosion: state media
Iran’s ambassador to Beirut was wounded in the pager explosion but his injuries were not serious, state media reported.
“Iranian ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani was injured in a pager explosion,” state television said, adding that his wounds were “superficial” and that he was “conscious and in no danger”.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
- AFP

Published - September 17, 2024 08:40 pm IST

Lebanon pagers explosion LIVE updates: Hezbollah says 9 killed, 2,750 injured; Iran’s Ambassador to Lebanon injured

Hezbollah chief Nasrallah not harmed in the blasts, the group says; Hezbollah official says it was the “biggest security breach” the group had suffered in nearly a year of war with Israel

Dozens wounded after pagers detonate in Lebanon, media and security officials say

Watch: What’s Hezbollah, and why is the militia permanently at war with Israel?

Hezbollah goes old-school to counter Israel’s modern surveillance methods

Top News Today

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Lebanon pagers explosion LIVE updates: Hezbollah says 9 killed, 2,750 injured; Iran’s Ambassador to Lebanon injured

Hezbollah chief Nasrallah not harmed in the blasts, the group says; Hezbollah official says it was the “biggest security breach” the group had suffered in nearly a year of war with Israel

Dozens wounded after pagers detonate in Lebanon, media and security officials say

Watch: What’s Hezbollah, and why is the militia permanently at war with Israel?

Hezbollah goes old-school to counter Israel’s modern surveillance methods

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Top News Today

Comments