Panic has erupted in Lebanon over a series of explosions involving communication devices. There is growing concern in the country about possible new strikes.
Fears are spreading in local circles: “What if tomorrow the lighters start exploding? Imagine, you want to light a cigarette and the cigarette explodes in your hands,” witnesses report.
The unprecedented string of attacks that Hezbollah has linked to Israel has had shocking consequences. The Saudi network Al-Hadath, citing Iranian sources, reported that the Lebanese are in a panic trying to get rid of all wireless devices. In addition, it was highlighted that the bombed radios are widely used in Iran, increasing the anxiety of the local population.
The New York Times noted that among the devices blown up were not only pagers, but also larger, heavier walkie-talkies, which some called “walkie-talkies.” Explosions of these devices caused large-scale fires, as radios contained more explosives. Although there were fewer casualties from radio bombing than from pagers (450 versus over 2,700), the death toll from radio bombing was higher (20) compared to 13 from pagers.
Hussein Auda, 54, told the Times that he witnessed a terrifying scene that looked like something out of a movie. He recounted how a man trying to clear a path for an ambulance in Beirut was seriously injured when a walkie-talkie exploded in his hands. According to one witness, it all happened in a matter of seconds and the device simply exploded in the victim’s hands. Hussein observed in alarm: “Maybe the lighters will start exploding tomorrow?”
A commentary on the Times article noted that the strikes demonstrated “tactical power” but that the longer-term objectives remained unclear. Major media outlets devoted their headlines to these events: the New York Post ran a front-page story with the headline “Beep Beep Boom,” the Daily Mail wrote about a “technological war,” and CNN ran the article “Hezbollah radios explode across Lebanon.” on its front page.
Earlier, Kursor reported that Lebanese media wrote about massive pager explosions that occurred in Lebanon on September 17. Hezbollah-controlled journalists then wrote that “in one minute, the enemy managed to inflict the most brutal blows on the Islamic resistance since the beginning of the conflict.”
