At least 11 people were killed, including an 8-year-old girl, and more than 2,700 more were wounded yesterday in Lebanon when hundreds of pagers exploded, in an apparent attack by Israel targeting Hezbollah operatives. The Lebanese Health Ministry stated that many of the injured suffered injuries to the eyes and hands. Hezbollah stated that at least eight of its fighters were among the dead. (New York Times)
Our Take
Although Israel neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the explosions, as per its standard procedure, the attack has all the fingerprints of an Israeli covert operation. According to some reports, Israel managed to gain access to a shipment of pagers purchased by Hezbollah and insert explosives into them before they were delivered. The explosives were then remotely detonated yesterday.
If true, the operation once again demonstrates Israel’s ability to perform complex and challenging covert operations, including the assassination of Hamas’ political leader Ismael Haniyeh in Tehran two months ago, as well as numerous targeted strikes against Iranian and Hezbollah leaders in Lebanon and Syria.