Several explosions were reported Wednesday afternoon in the Dahieh area of Beirut, Lebanon, as exploding hand-held radios killed at least 14 people and injured approximately 450.
Lebanon’s state news agency reported that three people were killed in Beqaa.
According to Sky News Arabic, the explosions took place during the funeral for Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese MP Ali Ammar’s son, who was killed when his beeper exploded on Tuesday.
The explosions occurred in multiple locations, including in private homes, the reports added. Injuries were reported in Dahieh, Ghaziyeh, and Al-Sarafand in southern Lebanon.
Multiple Hezbollah terrorists are among the injured in the explosions.
Media speculation has shone the spotlight on Israel and its intelligence agency Mossad. Israel has not taken credit for the attack.
Notably, Iran has threatened to attack Israel if it attacks Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Asharq Al-Awsat reported that “hundreds” were wounded in the second wave that took place on Wednesday, many of them in their stomachs and hands.
In at least one instance, a vehicle caught fire after a communications device exploded.
Following the explosions, Hezbollah terrorists in Syria were instructed to turn off all their communications devices, Arab media reported.
A Sky News reporter attending one of the funerals said that Hezbollah terrorists were throwing away both their phones’ and their communications devices’ batteries.
Reports soon said that the second “wave” of explosions affected thousands of military communications devices, which exploded within minutes of each other across Lebanon. This system is an alternate system, used following Tuesday’s explosions.
The country’s Health Ministry later said that nine people were killed in Wednesday’s radio explosions, and over 300 were injured. Lebanon’s Civil Defense responded: “We are working to extinguish several fires which broke out in homes, vehicles, and stores in the Beqaa area, on Mount Lebanon, and in Dahieh in Beirut.”
The Civil Defense later added that 60 homes, stores, 15 vehicles, and dozens of motorcycles were affected, and that in addition to the communications devices, two fingerprinting devices also exploded.
Meanwhile,Saudi news channel Al-Hadath reported that 19 members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard were killed in the beeper explosions on Tuesday, and 150 were injured. Tehran has denied the reports. According to the Lebanese Health Ministry, approximately 3,000 people were injured in the explosions, and 12 were killed.
Al-Hadath later reported that parallel to the radio explosions which affected Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon, there were also explosions at the headquarters of the Popular Mobilization Forces, a pro-Iranian militia in Mosul, Iraq.
But what does this all mean? Is this the opening salvo to Israel’s war against Hezbollah? Now that Israel has allegedly killed and maimed thousands of Hezbollah operatives, there are fewer fighters to fill Hezbollah’s operational ranks. In addition, anyone injured is now a marked man as Israel can see they were carrying a Hezbollah device and therefore, in its view, is a legitimate military target.
Speaking to Israeli troops on Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said, “We are at the start of a new phase in the war — it requires courage, determination and perseverance.”
He did not acknowledge the attack in Lebanon, but it is clear Israel is marching towards war in the north. Gallant ordered the transfer of forces from Gaza to the northern border in what appears to be preparation for a large-scale invasion of Lebanon.
If the exploding beepers and walkie-talkies were the opening salvo, then we are sure to see more to come.