A series of simultaneous pager explosions in Lebanon have killed at least nine people and injured around 2,800, 200 of them seriously. The United States has said it is gathering information about the incident.
“I can tell you that the United States was not involved. The United States was not aware of this incident in advance,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at a press conference, as quoted by the Reuters Agency.
The United States also said it was concerned about any developments that could lead to an escalation of tensions in the Middle East, but it was still “too early” to understand how this could affect ceasefire talks in Gaza. Matthew Miller also warned Iran to be careful not to take advantage of the instability caused by the explosions.
The explosions prompted accusations from the Lebanese government, Hezbollah and Hamas, blaming Israel for this “aggression”. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri also blamed Tel Aviv for the synchronized explosion of the pagers and offered his Lebanese counterpart, Abdullah Bu Habib, help in treating some of the nearly 3,000 injured.
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The detonation of the pagers was Hezbollah’s “biggest security failure” in nearly a year of conflict with Israel, a Hezbollah operative told Reuters, cited by jornal “The Guardian”. The explosions apparently occurred after a change in the brand of small boxes that allow receiving messages, sound alerts or telephone numbers via radio frequency. The pro-Iranian group adopted these devices to prevent the use of mobile phones and other devices, which then allow for targeted assassinations of its members.
OTHER NEWS THAT MARKED THE DAY:
⇒ Israel updated the objectives of the ongoing war, including the return home of some 60,000 evacuees in the north, near the border with Lebanon, due to crossfire with Hezbollah. “Israel will continue to take active practical steps to achieve this objective,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
⇒ Israel’s Internal Security Service (Shin Bet) said it foiled a Hezbollah attempt to kill a former agency official using a remotely triggered device from Lebanon. The Shin Bet did not name the former official or provide details, but stressed that its agents prevented the attack “in the final stages of its execution.”
⇒ “The Israeli authorities have stopped granting visas to officials and staff of the international community of non-governmental organizations,” wrote the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) on its social media account X. The message refers to a statement by UNRWA director Philippe Lazzarini, who denounces that Israel is progressively reducing the presence of humanitarian agencies and journalists.
⇒ The UN General Assembly meets from Tuesday to consider a Palestinian resolution proposal that demands that Israel end “its illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” within 12 months. The reflection on this opinion aims to culminate in a vote on the proposed resolution – which is expected to take place on Wednesday.
⇒ UN Under-Secretary-General Jorge Moreira da Silva argues that only “Israel’s political will” can solve the problem of insufficient levels of humanitarian aid in Gaza, which “has never been logistical, but rather political”. The statements come on the same day that a report prepared by organizations operating in Gaza denounces that Israel is blocking 83% of food aid and states that residents have gone from receiving two meals a day to just one every two days.
Source: expresso.pt
