“YOU RECEIVED AN ENCRYPTED MESSAGE:” HOW DID ISRAEL BLOW UP HEZBOLLAH PAGERS?

Sun 06 October 2024:

In a covert operation last month, thousands of Hezbollah members were killed or injured after their pagers and walkie-talkies, embedded with explosives, were detonated in an alleged Israeli attack. The incident occurred on September 17-18, marking the start of a series of Israeli airstrikes targeting Hezbollah.

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— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) September 17, 2024

Designed to Cause Maximum Injury

According to a report by The Washington Post, the explosive devices were activated when Hezbollah operatives received an encrypted message requiring them to press two buttons on their pagers. This action, sources say, ensured that users had to hold the devices with both hands, maximizing injury. “You had to push two buttons to read the message,” one official explained, adding that the goal was to “wound both their hands, rendering the user incapable of fighting.”

On September 17, the signal was sent to detonate the pagers and a message in Arabic appeared on their screens reading, “You received an encrypted message.”

A video shows a man, left, just before he was injured by an explosion in a market in Beirut on September 17, 2024, as pagers used by Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon. (Screen capture: X)

When the operators pressed the two required buttons to read the message, the pagers exploded. Less than 60 seconds later, the Post reported, thousands of other pagers also exploded even without the pair of buttons being used.

Officials from Israel, the U.S., and the Middle East estimate that around 3,000 Hezbollah members were either killed or injured in the attack. Civilians were also reportedly affected. The devices, including walkie-talkies used since 2015, had been weaponized with tiny explosives, hidden so well that even X-rays couldn’t detect the danger.

The Post report — which cited Israeli, Arab, and American security officials, politicians and diplomats, as well as Lebanese sources close to Hezbollah, all of them anonymous — said the pagers were made in Israel and conceived by the Mossad spy agency.

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Trusting Israeli-Made Pagers

Hezbollah had initially purchased the pagers to avoid Israeli surveillance. Sold under the Apollo brand, these AR924 pagers were believed to be reliable, boasting waterproof designs and long battery life. Unbeknownst to Hezbollah, the pagers had been manufactured in Israel, with small amounts of explosives added to each battery.

HOW DID HEZBOLLAH GET THE PAGERS THAT EXPLODED IN LEBANON?

The Post revealed that the pagers, made in Israel under Mossad’s direction, were distributed to Hezbollah’s mid-level fighters and personnel as early as February. The operation had been approved by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet on September 12, after a meeting with security advisers.

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE MYSTERY WOMAN WHOSE COMPANY LICENSED EXPLODING PAGERS

Explosive Fallout and the Targeting of Nasrallah

Along with detonating the pagers, Israeli officials had also considered targeting Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah. Despite knowing his location for years, Israeli officials refrained from the attack, fearing an all-out war with Hezbollah and Iran. However, Nasrallah’s refusal to agree to a ceasefire with Israel further escalated tensions in the region.

The operation culminated with the detonation of walkie-talkies on September 18, inflicting further damage on Hezbollah. While Israeli officials claimed this blow significantly weakened the group, the full extent of the attack’s consequences remains to be seen, as Hezbollah grapples with the immense loss of life and equipment.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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