Over a Thousand Hezbollah Participants Could Have Been Injured in Massive Pager Explosion in Beirut.

An unusual incident occurred in Lebanon - pagers worn by many Hezbollah militants exploded almost simultaneously, injuring many of them. This information was published by WSJ.

Dozens of Hezbollah fighters have had radio transmitters explode in their pockets. They fear that Israeli intelligence agents hacked into the devices and somehow caused them to detonate. pic.twitter.com/XZK6RimB3R

— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) September 17, 2024

According to eyewitnesses, the affected pagers were from a new batch the group had received just a few days ago. A Hezbollah representative stated that hundreds of militants were equipped with these devices and that a malicious program likely caused them to overheat and explode. He also mentioned that some people felt unusual heating and discarded the pagers before they caught fire.

Hospitals in Lebanon are packed. pic.twitter.com/G3HKOWphyi

— Moshe Schwartz (backup) (@MosheReports) September 17, 2024

The cause of the explosions is still unknown. They occurred in several areas of the country where Hezbollah has a significant presence. The Israeli military reported that they would not comment on the incident.

The number of injured grew so quickly that there was no way to accurately count it, but according to a Hezbollah representative, it exceeded 1,000 people. Hospitals across the country worked to provide assistance to the wounded. And the streets of Beirut were filled with ambulance calls.

The explosion caused this much damage on a dresser. Imagine what it did in the pockets of Hezbollah members. pic.twitter.com/Dt94ztaxRd

— Moshe Schwartz (backup) (@MosheReports) September 17, 2024

Local security services reported that wireless communication devices exploded in various parts of the country, with the highest concentration in the southern suburbs of Beirut. They urged citizens to clear the roads to facilitate the transportation of the injured to hospitals.

Among the injured were finger losses, head injuries, and serious body injuries.

Lebanon's Minister of Health, Firas Abyad, said he needed more Time to accurately determine the total number of casualties, but his assessment was that the number of emergency department visits in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah's stronghold, was extremely high.

"It seems that the number of casualties is in the hundreds," he said. "Many patients are in emergency departments in most regions of the country, and doctors are working on triaging these cases."

He also added that he did not know the cause or how it happened, but many medical workers discarded their pagers fearing a second wave of explosions.

Such an incident occurred amid escalating tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border. Hezbollah started bombarding Israel with rockets shortly after Hamas's attack on southern Israel on October 7, which sparked the war in the Gaza Strip. Since then, both sides have been firing daily, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of Hezbollah militants.