BEIRUT: At least nine people were killed and 2,800 injured, many seriously, when handheld pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded on Tuesday in an incident described as the group’s “biggest security breach yet.”
The explosions sparked widespread panic in the southern suburbs of Beirut, as well as areas in the south of Lebanon, and in the Bekaa, especially Ali Al-Nahri and Rayak.
Hundreds of people were rushed to hospital for emergency treatment, with medical reports saying that some of the injured lost limbs in the explosions.
Hezbollah members in Syria were also targeted, according to Syrian media.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and government ministers were told about the security breach during a cabinet meeting.
Mikati ordered the Minister of Health Firas Abiad to leave the session and mobilize medical services.
Abiad later issued a statement saying that nine people were killed in the explosions, while another 2,800 were injured, including 200 critical cases.
Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, was among those injured when his pager exploded, Mehr News Agency reported.
The communication devices exploded while they were in members’ hands or in their pockets, leaving many writhing on the ground in agony.
Security cameras in shops and on the streets showed people injured while walking, standing, or sitting.
A camera in a supermarket captured the moment a device exploded as a man approached a cashier.
The unprecedented security breach led to chaos. Appeals were made for blood donations, and the health ministry told hospitals to ensure emergency departments were prepared.
Hospitals in the south reached full capacity, and the injured were transferred to Sidon and Beirut. Many of those seeking treatment arrived in civilian vehicles or on motorcycles.
In an initial statement, Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces urged Lebanese to keep the roads clear so the injured could be taken to hospital.
Hezbollah turned to old wireless devices, or pagers, fitted with lithium batteries after Israel targeted and killed a number of its leaders and members by hacking cell phones and cameras connected to the internet.
The pager is a small, easy-to-carry automatic device used to receive short messages. Hezbollah adopted it because it was believed to untraceable.
The Lebanese Red Cross said that more than 30 ambulances transported and treated the injured in the south, the Bekaa, and the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Hezbollah members in areas where the explosions took place tried to stop journalists and onlookers from photographing the injured.
More than one Lebanese security source denied that any Israeli military drones were flying over the southern suburbs of Beirut at the time the pagers exploded.
In an initial statement, Hezbollah said that three people, including a young girl, died in the explosions.
The group said that its specialist units are conducting a wide-ranging security and scientific investigation to determine the cause of the explosions.
Hezbollah said that “it is at the highest level of readiness to defend Lebanon and its steadfast people.”
