More Electronics Explode In Lebanon As Israel Declares ‘New Phase’ Of War

After yesterday’s unprecedented explosions targeting the pagers belonging to thousands of Hezbollah members, which you can read about here, another wave of similar explosions has hit Lebanon. The second series of explosions appears to have targeted walkie-talkies used by members of the Iran-backed militant group, although there are suggestions that a variety of electronic devices may have been affected. While Israel did not claim responsibility for the two-day attacks, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant today. stated the beginning of a “new phase” of the war with a focus on the northern front.

The latest reports from the Lebanese health ministry state that 14 were killed and more than 450 injured in explosions that hit several cities in Lebanon today. Three of those killed were said to be in the Bekaa region in the east of the country. Many of the injuries were reported to the abdomen and hands of the victims, as was the case yesterday.

The Lebanese Red Cross said more than 30 ambulances were deployed to “multiple explosions” in southern and eastern Lebanon, with another 50 ambulances put on alert to support rescue and evacuation operations.

A Hezbollah source confirmed the nature of the attack, which so far bears many of the hallmarks of yesterday’s series of explosions, which was widely attributed to Israel.

As was the case yesterday, when the pagers were targeted, injuring more than 2,800 and killing 12, the explosions today were of “small dimensions”.

Photos and videos of today’s explosions show various broken and burned communications equipment, among many examples of the ICOM IC-V82 two-way walkie-talkie radio, a product made in Japan.

One of the explosions happened during a funeral that was held in the south of Beirut for members of Hezbollah killed yesterday.

Following yesterday’s explosions, there were reports that Israel was able to place small explosive devices in thousands of pagers that were bought by Hezbollah.

Today, many solar energy systems have also exploded in people’s homes throughout Lebanon, according to to the National News Agencywith at least one such explosion injuring a girl in the town of al-Zahrani, south Lebanon.

There have also been pictures of exploded fingerprint readers, like the one in the tweet above.

Additional reports state that at least one of the walkie-talkie models that exploded in Lebanon today has been discontinued, but that Hezbollah received a shipment of them five months ago, around the same time it appears to have received the pagers involved in the explosions from yesterday This clearly indicates that the devices were tampered with before they reached Hezbollah’s hands.

However, today’s events at least suggest that many more types of electronic devices could be modified into explosive devices, raising more questions about how the attacks were orchestrated, and whether more will come. The deeper implications of this dystopian development are something we have previously discussed at length.

However, if Israel is now able to target Hezbollah members and associates via a variety of types of electronic devices, the last two days of attacks may also imply that Israel is about to launch a large-scale campaign against the militant group.

Not only do these explosions help remove key Hezbollah figures from the equation, but they also greatly reduce the group’s ability to communicate and maintain a chain of command. Then there is the significant factor of sowing fear and confusion in Hezbollah, but also more broadly in Lebanon, including the ability of the group to operate more freely. Overloading the hospitals with injuries would be another impact of these detonations that benefit an opposing force before a campaign.

In a reflection of the chaos created by the explosions, there were reports today of Hezbollah members frantically pulling the batteries from any walkie-talkies that haven’t exploded, and putting the parts in metal barrels, in case they detonate.

As TWZ Editor-in-chief Tyler Rogoway observed, if Israel has invested heavily in such an exotic spying capability, it may be forced to use it to its fullest extent as quickly as possible if there was an imminent risk of it being compromised. Under ideal circumstances, such measures would be exploited before or right at the beginning of a major military operation to degrade the opposite as discussed above. Now there are signs that Israel is about to launch such an operation. There are also reports that the detonation of these devices was rushed for fear that the operation would be discovered.

International concern is also growing. Even before today’s explosions, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said it was “very important” that civilian targets should not be armed.

The UN chief said yesterday’s explosions presented “a serious risk of a dramatic escalation in Lebanon” and warned that “everything must be done” to avoid this. He continued:

“What happened is particularly serious, not only because of the number of victims it caused, but because of the indications that exist that this was activated, I would say, in advance of a normal way to activate these things, because there was a risk that this is discovered.”

The first diplomat of the European Union, Josep Borrell, described the detonations of the device in Lebanon as “extremely worrying”, noting that they had caused “heavy and indiscriminate collateral damage among civilians”.

There are now other signs from Israel that it may soon begin a more targeted campaign against Hezbollah, including unconfirmed reports of movements of large numbers of troops and armor towards the border.

Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, the head of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), said that the country has drawn up plans for additional action against Hezbollah and is ready to attack.

Halevi also warned that Israel has “many more capabilities” that have not been used.

“We have many capabilities that we have not yet activated … we have seen some of these things, it seems to me that we are well prepared, and we have prepared these plans going forward. At every stage, the price for Hezbollah must be high,” he added Halevi.

In a statement today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to return tens of thousands of Israelis who had been evacuated from towns along the northern border with Lebanon as Hezbollah stepped up its campaign of missile attacks.

Together, and potentially driven by the need to address electronic detonations, these developments may well indicate that a full-scale conflict between Israel and Hezbollah could be imminent, fueled by tensions that have risen dramatically in recent months.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com