Dozens of pagers exploded in Lebanon: Netanyahu admits having authorized the attack against Hezbollah

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged for the first time on Sunday that he had given the green light to the pager attack against Lebanese Hezbollah in September, his spokesperson, Omer Dostri, told AFP.

Authorization given

Speaking at the weekly Council of Ministers, Mr. Netanyahu said he had authorized this operation which had not previously been claimed, confirmed Mr. Dostri.

On September 17 and 18, 2024, pagers and walkie-talkies exploded in Lebanon. These are the communications devices favored by members of Hezbollah, a pro-Iranian group responsible for several terrorist attacks in the region for years. They thought these devices were inviolable, and yet their simultaneous explosion made them say that they had been hacked.

The devices are rudimentary. They allow you to send or receive very short messages. These were beepers from the Taiwanese brand Golf Apollo. But the latter, with the New York Timesdenied having manufactured pagers for Hezbollah: “These are not our products from start to finish.”

The only pagers sold by Golf Apollo were for a Hungarian partner, BAC. Also, “we authorize BAC to use our brand for the sale of products in certain regions, but the design and manufacture of the products is the sole responsibility of BAC”defends the Taiwanese company.

Used en masse since 2023

Since 2023, Hezbollah has banned its members from using their cell phones during combat. The group fears that the devices could be hacked by the many enemies he made on the continent.

Also, the Shiite movement recommends preventing relatives of its members from allowing applications on their phones to access their microphones and cameras.