Walkie-talkies and solar equipment exploded in Beirut and several areas of Lebanon on Wednesday, 18 September, which has killed 14 and injured at least 450 people across Lebanon, marking the second wave of attacks on electronic devices.
This comes just a day after hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah detonated. According to state media and Hezbollah officials, at least 12 people have been killed and over 300 injured in this latest incident, as reported by the Lebanese Health Ministry.
These attacks have ushered in a new phase of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. Hezbollah, which has been involved in regular cross-border clashes with Israel, has accused Israel of orchestrating the deadly pager explosions. Hezbollah vowed that Israel would face repercussions for the attacks, although the Israeli military has not yet commented on the situation.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant stated on Wednesday, “We are at the start of a new phase in the war — it requires courage, determination, and perseverance.”
While he didn’t address the explosions of electronic devices, he commended the efforts of Israel’s army and security agencies, calling their results “very impressive.”
The new blasts follow the aftermath of Tuesday’s pager bombings, which resulted in the deaths of at least 12 people, including two children, and left around 2,800 others injured.
Although the pagers were used by Hezbollah members, there was no way to determine who was holding them at the time of the explosion, AP reports. Many of the casualties were not different individuals that primarily serve Lebanon’s Shiite civilian community.
Egypt’s Foreign Minister, Badr Abdel Aati, reached out to Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati to express “Egypt’s solidarity, both from the president and the people,” following the cyberattack explosions that shook the country.
In his conversations with Prime Minister Mikati and Foreign Minister Abdallah Bouhabib, Abdel Aati conveyed directives from Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to promptly provide support to the Lebanese people.
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