World Insights: Thousands injured in pager explosions in Lebanon as Israel signals military shift northward

BEIRUT, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) — At least nine people were killed and roughly 2,800 wounded, including around 200 in critical condition, across Lebanon on Tuesday when their pagers simultaneously exploded.
The mass casualties, reported by Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad, included members of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. This followed Israel’s declaration of shifting its military focus from the Gaza Strip to Lebanon after an 11-month devastating war.
According to Gaza-based health authorities, the conflict has led to over 41,000 Palestinian deaths as of Tuesday. The Israeli assault began after Hamas militants killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and took 250 hostages on October 7, 2023.
In Lebanon’s neighbor Syria, 14 Hezbollah fighters were injured when their communication devices exploded in the capital, Damascus, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor.
It added that the injuries occurred when communication devices exploded inside a vehicle near the Kafr Sousa neighborhood, as well as in two similar incidents in the Sayyida Zaynab area of southern Damascus and an undisclosed location in the western Qalamoun region.
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the blasts, but the Arab League, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Hezbollah, and Yemen’s Houthis have all accused it of being responsible.

UNEXPECTED ATTACK
Israeli military targeted the batteries of these pagers, leading to their explosions, Lebanon’s Elnashra news website reported, adding the injured were being transferred to hospitals.
In addition to Hezbollah militants, the son of Hezbollah parliamentarian Ali Ammar was among those killed, and Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani was among the injured, according to Elnashra.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati urged the mobilization of all departments of the Public Health Ministry to follow up on medical care for the wounded.
The Emergency Operations Center under the ministry issued an urgent statement requesting all hospitals across Lebanon to be on high alert and enhance preparedness to meet the massive need for emergency health services.
The ministry also asked all citizens to discard their pager devices immediately over safety concerns.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi said his country was ready to assist in treating the injured or transferring them to Tehran.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani has pledged to send medical teams to Lebanon to provide urgent assistance for the wounded.

FEARS OF ESCALATION
The unexpected explosions came after Israel’s security cabinet decided earlier in the day to expand the goals of the military operation in the Gaza Strip to include the safe return of residents in northern Israel who were evacuated due to the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border.
The decision, widely seen as a step toward further escalation, followed recent warnings from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant that Israel was prepared to intensify the conflict with Hezbollah, the Lebanese armed group that showed support to Hamas by attacking Israel after the outbreak of the conflict in Gaza in October last year.
In a statement released after Tuesday’s explosions, Hezbollah said it is conducting security and scientific investigations to identify the reasons behind the explosions, adding that the group is “at the highest level of readiness to defend Lebanon and its people.”
In a separate statement, the Shiite group blamed Israel for “this criminal attack,” vowing to retaliate.
Shortly after the pager explosions, Netanyahu and Gallant held a security assessment meeting in Tel Aviv.
An Israeli government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua that the security assessment meeting was focusing on potential Israeli responses to a possible escalation triggered by the explosions.
Local authorities in northern Israel have asked residents to remain near shelters and have reinforced safe rooms, citing concerns of a potential escalation of situation.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit warned against the consequences of this dangerous escalation against Lebanon and its people, adding that these attacks threaten to destabilize the regional situation.
During separate phone calls with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty warned of the risks of a greater regional war.

CONDEMNATION
After the explosions, Gheit condemned what he called the “treacherous Israeli attacks on communication devices in Lebanon.”
During a phone call with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib after the explosions, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi strongly condemned the targeting of Lebanese citizens in the explosions, calling it a “terrorist action by Israel.”
Meanwhile, the Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned what it called a “bloody aggression” by Israel against Lebanon. The ministry accused Israel of using advanced technology to spread “death and bloodshed” in an “unparalleled manner.”
The ministry said Israel aims to expand the conflict and is motivated by a desire for further violence.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Wednesday the explosions are “a monstrous act of terrorism” and “an obvious attempt to ignite a major conflict.”
She said Moscow has called on all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from taking steps that could destabilize the region.
Mohammed Abdul-Salam, spokesman for the Houthi group in Yemen, issued a brief statement on the social media platform X, condemning the attack in Lebanon.
“We condemn the Israeli security attack on Lebanon, which targeted many civilians. This is a heinous crime and a violation of Lebanese sovereignty,” Abdul-Salam said. ■