At least 20 people in Lebanon have been killed by widespread explosions of two-way radios (walkie-talkies) used by Hezbollah.
It follows a round of pager explosions targeting Hezbollah militants, which killed around a dozen people and injured nearly 3,000 others.
Hezbollah has blamed the strikes on neighbouring Israel, who have not directly commented on the explosions.
The U.S. and UN have urged de-escalation in the region.
Hezbollah
Hezbollah is derived from the Arabic term ‘Hizb Allah’, which translates to ‘Party of God’.
The group is based in Lebanon and receives funding and training from Iran.
Since Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on 7 October, Hezbollah has pledged support to Hamas. There have been multiple cross-border attacks between Israel and Hezbollah.
Australia lists Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation.
Pager explosions
Earlier this week, pagers belonging to Hezbollah members exploded across Lebanon. The pagers lit up with messages for their users before they were detonated.
Lebanon’s health ministry said 12 people were killed and 2,750 others were injured in the explosions.
Pagers are low-level communication devices Hezbollah has been using to evade Israeli surveillance because they use radio waves, not phone networks.
Walkie talkies
Overnight, walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah members exploded in southern Lebanon and the capital city, Beirut.
The two-way radios are believed to have had explosives deliberately planted inside them, in a similar style of attack to the pager blasts.
Lebanon’s health ministry said 20 people had been killed and 450 injured.
Hezbollah blamed the attack on Israel, describing the attacks as “ongoing barbaric aggression”.
Response
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attacks.
In a video statement, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said the “centre of gravity” of the war was “moving north” — towards Israel’s border with Lebanon.
Anonymous officials have told some media outlets that Israel’s spy agency, Mossad, and its military, the IDF, were behind the attacks.
U.S. National Security Spokesperson John Kirby said the U.S. was not involved in either wave of attacks.
