This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . The next check for changes will be
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/sep/17/hundreds-of-hezbollah-members-hurt-in-lebanon-after-pagers-explode
The article has changed 11 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Scores of Hezbollah members hurt in Lebanon after pagers explode | Scores of Hezbollah members hurt in Lebanon after pagers explode |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Detonation of pagers is biggest security breach for group since war with Israel began last year, Hezbollah official says | Detonation of pagers is biggest security breach for group since war with Israel began last year, Hezbollah official says |
| Scores of members of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, including fighters and medics, were seriously wounded on Tuesday when the pagers they use to communicate exploded, a security source told Reuters. | Scores of members of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, including fighters and medics, were seriously wounded on Tuesday when the pagers they use to communicate exploded, a security source told Reuters. |
| A Hezbollah official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the detonation of the pagers was the “biggest security breach” the group had been subjected to in nearly a year of war with Israel. | A Hezbollah official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the detonation of the pagers was the “biggest security breach” the group had been subjected to in nearly a year of war with Israel. |
| A Reuters journalist saw ambulances rushing through the southern suburbs of the capital, Beirut, amid widespread panic. People said explosions were taking place even 30 minutes after the initial blasts. | A Reuters journalist saw ambulances rushing through the southern suburbs of the capital, Beirut, amid widespread panic. People said explosions were taking place even 30 minutes after the initial blasts. |
| Groups of people huddled at the entrance of buildings to check on people they knew who may have been wounded, the Reuters journalist said. | Groups of people huddled at the entrance of buildings to check on people they knew who may have been wounded, the Reuters journalist said. |
| The security source added that devices were also exploding in the south of Lebanon. | The security source added that devices were also exploding in the south of Lebanon. |
| There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which has exchanged near-daily strikes with Hezbollah since the 7 October Hamas attacks which triggered the war. | |
| The incident in Lebanon comes as the Israeli prime inister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has been holding a series of high-level security consultations with the heads of the security forces as tensions with Hezbollah in Lebanon rise, according to Israeli media reports. | |
| The Times of Israel and Ynet news described the meetings as “dramatic.” | |
| The high-level security consultations were called a few hours after Israel, during an overnight meeting of the security cabinet on Tuesday, approved the decision to expand its war goals to include the return of tens of thousands of Israelis evacuated from towns along the northern frontier that have been badly damaged by rockets fired by Hezbollah – a move that suggests a major military operation against the Lebanese militant group is likely. | |
| On Tuesday, Israel’s internal security agency said it had foiled an attempt by Hezbollah to kill a former senior Israeli security official, which was reportedly to be carried out in the coming days. The Shin Bet said in a statement that it had found an explosive “device fitted with a camera and a mechanism that would allow it to be activated by Hezbollah from Lebanon,“, although it did not provide evidence linking the device to the Lebanese group. | |
| Hezbollah officials have said in the past that the group would stand down if a Gaza ceasefire was reached, while Israel insists it cannot allow militants to remain in the border area in Lebanon’s south. | |
| The violence has killed hundreds – mostly fighters – in Lebanon, and dozens of civilians and soldiers on the Israeli side. The fighting has also forced tens of thousands of people on both sides to flee their homes. | |
| In recent days, according to media reports in the country, Netanyahu has been allegedly considering dismissing the defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in a move that would the biggest leadership shake-up in the country since the 7 October attacks, and could potentially pave the way to an all-out conflict against Hezbollah in Lebanon. | |
| Gallant is believed to have consistently opposed a major military operation in Lebanon at this time, as the country is still fighting Hamas in Gaza, with the West Bank witnessing an escalation of violence and military activities, and while the country is fighting off Houthi missile attacks and dealing with Iran’s nuclear ambitions and threats. |