Hezbollah walkie talkies blow up as Israel announces ‘new phase’ of war

Hezbollah walkie-talkies and electronics explode in a second wave of attacks, as Israel’s Defence Minister says the war’s ‘centre of gravity’ is moving north and the IDF warns of ‘many capabilities we haven’t yet activated’ | WATCH

Israel has announced a new phase of the war against Iran-backed Hamas, opening a new northern front with Iran proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon as a second wave of blasts, this time targeting Hezbollah owned walkie talkie two way radios, rocked the country on Wednesday local time.

“We are at the onset of a new phase in this war and we need to adapt, the centre of gravity is moving north, ” Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told Israeli air force personnel on Wednesday as the country’s elite 98th division was redeployed from fighting in Gaza to the northern area where Israel borders Lebanon.

“We have not forgotten the abductees and we have not forgotten our tasks in the south.’’

Images circulating online purport to show communication devices used by Hezbollah that exploded in Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/xV8tIFGDDh

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) September 18, 2024

In further warning, Israeli Defence Forces chief of staff Lt. Gen Herzi Halevi told the Northern Command: “We have many capabilities that we have not yet activated, we have seen some of these things, it seems to me we are well prepared.

“The rule is that every time we reach a certain stage, we have already prepared to move ahead forcefully with the next two steps. At each stage, the cost for Hezbollah should be high.’’

Mr Gallant’s and Lt. Gen. Halevi’s messages came as hundreds of Hezbollah walkie talkies and other every day electronics detonated in Lebanon, killing at least 20 people just 24 hours after thousands of pagers belonging to Hezbollah commanders caused the deaths of 12 and injured thousands of others.

The Lebanon Ministry of Health reported the death toll from the hundreds of new explosions is expected to rise, and with 450 wounded, as a fresh wave of anxiety enveloped the country late on Wednesday afternoon local time.

Sami Naider, an analyst from the Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs in Beirut told Sky News local people were wondering what would happen next and whether the latest explosions are the forerunner of a full blown war.

لحظة انفجار جهاز لاسلكي أثناء تشييع في الضاحية الجنوبية pic.twitter.com/jNYyKHhzDq

— Al Jadeed News (@ALJADEEDNEWS) September 18, 2024

Hezbollah has blamed Israel for the attacks and vowed revenge, but Jerusalem has refused to comment. However, Mr Gallant in his address paid credit to Mossad - believed to have organised the blasts - for its “great achievements.”

Hours after the second wave of attacks, Israelis received text messages purporting to be from the IDF Homefront Command and other agencies. Under the title “emergency alert,” the messages told them to take shelter, with a link stating: “You must enter a protected area.” Officials warned the link was a fake and advised Israelis not to click on it.

The second wave of attacks came as it was revealed yesterday’s pager attacks, which specifically targeted some of Hezbollah’s most senior commanders, were months in the making but was triggered early because the plot had been uncovered by Hezbollah operatives. The decision to explode the walkie-talkies was also made over concerns Hezbollah’s investigation into the pager blasts would expose a breach in the hand-held devices, which were meant only for emergency communiction, the Axios website reports.

The website Axios reported that an unnamed US official said it was a “use it or lose it moment”.

The United Nations security council announced it was convening on Friday over the Lebanon blasts after a request by Algeria on behalf of Arab states. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned before the walkie talkie development that the pager blasts targeting Hezbollah showed a serious risk of a dramatic escalation in Lebanon. He said: “everything must be done to avoid that escalation. Obviously, the logic of making all these devices explode is to do it as a pre-emptive strike before a major military operation”.

Mirroring Tuesday’s pager explosions, on Wednesday the blasts appeared directed at walkie talkies before other electronic devices also exploded.

Walkie talkies and motor bike ignitions blew up across Lebanon. Picture: X/Twitter.

Mourners toss rice over the coffin of person a killed after hundreds of paging devices exploded in a deadly wave across Lebanon. Picture: AFP.

Amid differing reports of the manufacturer of the walkie talkies, Reuters reported that images of the exploded devices showed an inside panel labelled “ICOM” and “Made in Japan.” ICOM’s website identifies it as a radio communications company. However thee were also reports that the walkie talkies, were labelled from Baofeng, a Chinese company, and were purchased five months ago, around the same time as the batch of booby-trapped pagers, and were used by senior Hezbollah officials.

Security analysts have suggested the walkie talkie blasts could have been triggered by drones, or other electronic signals which can pick up the frequency on which the devices operate, or that the device’s emergency button could have been tampered with before distribution.

In one of many incidents, a walkie talkie exploded during a funeral for four of Tuesday’s pager blast victims, including Mohammad Ammar, the son of Hezbollah MP Ali Ammar, causing mass panic among mourners. The latest explosions are reported to be larger than yesterday’s.

Local media was also reporting fires caused by a sudden shock to electronic devices at homes, solar panels and even electronic ignitions on motorcycles in Hezbollah regions of southern Beirut, the Beqaa Valley, and southern Lebanon. Phones and even fingerprint reading devices were also targeted.

Hezbollah issued an urgent social media alert on its social media channels for militants to check all mobile and electronic devices “to make sure they are not captured” and to “disconnect the batteries of any wireless technology device”.

The targeting of everyday items with electronic capabilities will also cause alarm to governments around the world, with defence experts saying every country will now be reviewing supply chains and manufacturing processes of vital infrastructure such as energy supplies as well as vehicles and other household devices.