On Tuesday, September 17th, the Lebanese Ministry of Health announced that wireless communication devices carried by thousands of Hezbollah members in Lebanon exploded almost simultaneously, resulting in significant casualties.
Minister of Health Firass Abiad stated that the explosion on Tuesday caused at least 8 fatalities, including Hezbollah militants, healthcare personnel, and around 2750 people injured, including 200 with severe injuries.
Lebanon’s Minister of Information, Ziad Makary, condemned the explosion of communication devices as “Israeli aggression.” Hezbollah also accused Israel of detonating the devices and claimed that Israel would face “appropriate punishment.”
The Israeli military has not yet responded to the explosion incident.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) posted on social media platform X, stating that Israel’s top military commander Herzi Halevi presided over a situation assessment meeting on Tuesday evening, focusing on preparedness in all areas of offense and defense. However, the Beirut explosion was not mentioned.
A Hezbollah official, speaking on condition of anonymity, was quoted by Reuters as saying that Tuesday’s explosion was the organization’s “largest security breach” in nearly a year of conflict with Israel.
This marks the most serious escalation in conflict between Israel and Iran-backed radical groups since the outbreak of the October war last year.
Hezbollah confirmed in a statement that at least 3 people had died, including two Hezbollah militants and a young girl. The organization stated that an investigation into the cause of the explosion is underway.
Reuters quoted three sources saying that the detonated wireless communication devices were a new model recently introduced by Hezbollah in the past few months.
The explosion occurred around 3:45 PM local time (13:45 GMT) and lasted for about an hour.
Hezbollah affirmed that their leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah was unharmed in the explosion.
According to Al Jazeera, photos from various locations in Lebanon show injured individuals lying on the ground, with blood everywhere, and hospitals requesting blood donations. Reports suggest that the devices were hacked and detonated, prompting Nasrallah to urge his fighters months ago to stop using smartphones.
Lebanon’s internal security forces reported that wireless communication devices were detonated in various locations across Lebanon, especially in Hezbollah’s stronghold in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Iranian media reported that Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani sustained minor injuries in the explosion on that day.