Lebanon files a complaint with the UN against Israel, accusing it of being responsible for the deadly explosions of booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies in September. An “act of war against humanity” which caused thousands of civilian victims. The Lebanese minister denounces a dangerous precedent and…
An act of war of a new kind. This is how Lebanon describes the deadly explosions of booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies that devastated the country last September. The toll is appalling: dozens of dead, thousands injured, some mutilated for life. And only one suspect in the eyes of the Lebanese authorities: Israel. To obtain justice, Lebanon has just taken a step forward by filing a complaint against the Jewish state with the International Labor Organization (ILO), a UN agency.
During a press conference in Geneva, the Lebanese Minister of Labor, Mustafa Bayram, denounced “a blatant war against humanity, against technology, against work”. Everyday objects transformed into lethal weapons, this is the terrible method chosen to sow death. “This is a very dangerous precedent,” insisted the minister, accompanied by correspondents from the Association of Journalists Accredited to the UN (ACANU).
The specter of the normalization of a new type of crime
This unprecedented complaint comes as Israel has intensified its air raids on Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon since September 23, after nearly a year of calm. An escalation triggered by the attack on booby traps and booby-trapped walkie-talkies, attributed to the Jewish state although it has not officially claimed responsibility. But for Mustafa Bayram, the international community is not mistaken. Israel is indeed “at the origin of this odious act” which mowed down in a few minutes more than 4,000 civilians, “martyrs, wounded and mutilated” combined.
Beyond the terrible human toll, with many victims having lost fingers or sight, it was a real “war against work” which was being fought out according to the minister. Because many of these high-tech objects, which have become deadly, were used on a daily basis by employees in the context of their professional activity. A determining criterion in the choice to contact the ILO.
If nothing is done, this crime could become normalized.
Mustafa Bayram, Lebanese Minister of Labor
But the approach pursues a broader objective: to avoid at all costs that this type of unprecedented attack becomes emulated. “If nothing is done, this crime could become normalized,” warns Mustafa Bayram. A risk considered serious enough to push Lebanon to consider turning to other international bodies such as the World Trade Organization.
Israel in the crosshairs for “a multitude of crimes”
Because there is no shortage of grievances against Israel on the Lebanese side. “The number of crimes is enormous”, underlines the minister who evokes the desire of his government to file “a multitude of complaints” to denounce the actions of the Jewish state. A country with which Lebanon is still officially at war and which has continued to intensify its military operations in recent months.
Since the resumption of hostilities in October 2023, the toll has continued to rise. According to an AFP count based on data from the Ministry of Health, at least 3,000 people have lost their lives, including nearly 2,000 since September 23. Clashes of rare violence which also threw more than a million Lebanese on the roads of exile. So much suffering that Lebanon now intends to expose on the international stage, with supporting evidence, to try to obtain the condemnation of Israel and avoid new tragedies.
