At least nine people have been killed and more than 2,750 others, including Hezbollah militants and medics, have been injured after their handheld pagers exploded across Lebanon, according to media and security officials.
A Hezbollah official confirmed that members of the group were wounded in different regions of Lebanon and Syria when the pagers detonated on Tuesday. The official accused Israel of orchestrating the explosions, calling it the “biggest security breach” the group has faced in nearly a year of conflict with Tel Aviv.
Among the fatalities were two Hezbollah militants, one of whom was the son of a Hezbollah parliament member, security sources told media. Lebanese media also reported the tragic death of a 9-year-old girl, Fatima Jaafar Abdullah, the daughter of a Hezbollah member, in northeastern Lebanon’s Baalbek District.
In addition, Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, was wounded in the blast. Iranian state media reported that while Amani was injured, his condition was not critical, stating that he was “conscious and in no danger.”
In response to the widespread explosions, the Lebanese Health Ministry issued an urgent advisory, calling on all citizens to immediately dispose of their pager devices.
This is the first incident of its kind since Israel and Hezbollah began exchanging frequent fire after Israel’s war on Gaza erupted in October last year. The detonation of the pagers, according to the Hezbollah official, represents an unprecedented security breach during this ongoing conflict.
Emergency services were quickly deployed, with journalists and photographers in Beirut’s southern suburbs witnessing ambulances transporting the injured to local hospitals. The Lebanese Red Cross confirmed it had mobilized 50 additional ambulances and 300 medical technicians to assist with the evacuations following the explosions.
In eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, a Hezbollah stronghold, further injuries were reported. Lebanon’s National News Agency described the explosions as an “unprecedented enemy security incident,” with pager devices detonating in multiple regions.
According to security officials, the pagers that exploded were the latest models Hezbollah had recently acquired. In response to the war in Gaza, Hezbollah had advised its members to avoid using mobile phones, relying instead on pagers to prevent Israeli interception of communications.
Hezbollah members have typically used their own telecommunications system to communicate internally.
