An unprecedented attack, with "tampered" pagers exploding on the bodies of Hezbollah fighters, took place yesterday causing, at least, 9 deaths. Today, Taiwan's Gold Apollo company said "the pagers had their logo but they did not manufacture them." The company's chairman said the pagers that exploded were made in Budapest, Hungary's capital, while U.S. officials explain why they were detonated now.
Alina Loi
Israel decided to blow up Hezbollah pagers in Lebanon and Syria because it was worried that the Iranian-backed Shiite group might discover sabotage of the devices, three U.S. officials told Axios.
The attack, which killed at least nine people including a child and wounded 2,800, came as tensions between Israel and Hezbollah escalate that many fear could lead to all-out war.
"It was a unique opportunity, otherwise it would have been wasted," a U.S. official said, referring to Israel's explanation to Washington for the timing of the attack.
It should be noted that the US media "pointed" to Israel, but the Israeli side has not claimed responsibility and has not admitted to being behind this attack.
Nevertheless, Hezbollah and the Lebanese leadership blame Israel for the attack.
Hezbollah said many members of its military arm and institutions were among the victims and vowed revenge. In a statement, it said it would continue strikes against Israel on the border regardless of revenge for blowing up the bombers.
The chronicle of the attack
Pagers used by hundreds of members of the militant group Hezbollah exploded almost simultaneously on Tuesday in Lebanon and Syria, killing at least nine people, including an 8-year-old girl, and wounding more than 2,000 people. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government blamed Israel for the sophisticated remote attack.
The AR-924 pagers that blew up Hezbollah fighters were manufactured by Budapest-based BAC Consulting KFT, in Hungary's capital, as Taiwan's Gold Apollo company said in a statement today, Wednesday.
Gold Apollo President Hsu Ching-Kuang told reporters that his company had a licensing agreement to use the mark with BAC for the past three years, but did not provide evidence of the contract.
"Pursuant to the partnership agreement, we have authorized BAC to use our brand to sell products in designated territories, but the design and manufacture of the products is solely the responsibility of BAC," the statement said.
Experts believe the explosive material was placed in the pagers before they were handed over to Hezbollah. Under this scenario, Israeli forces (or whoever did the sabotage) managed to infiltrate into the production line or the supply chain and tamper the pagers that they then blew up when the Islamist militants had them on them.
The AR-924 buzzer, which is advertised as "durable," has a rechargeable lithium battery, according to its specifications advertised on Gold Apollo's website, a post taken down yesterday after the attack. These pagers can receive text messages of up to 100 characters.
Its battery, according to the ad, lasts 85 days while the pagers also operate on a different wireless network than mobile phones, which makes them more resilient to emergencies – one of the reasons why many hospitals worldwide still rely on them.
For Hezbollah, the use of the pagers was a means of countering Israel's intensive electronic surveillance of mobile phone networks across the country.
"The phone we have in our hands — I don't have a phone in my hand — is a surveillance device," Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah had warned during a speech in February.
He later added: "I tell you that the phone in your hands, in your wife's hands and in the hands of your children is the agent. It is a deadly factor. It is a lethal agent that provides specific and accurate information. Therefore, this requires great seriousness when dealing with it."
Taiwan's Gold Apollo, whose logo was on the bombers that exploded, announced today that the pagers were manufactured by Budapest-based BAC Consulting KFT.
Taiwanese chairman Hsu Ching Kuan said the agreement with Hungary's BAC had been in place for the past three years.
"This company has worked with us and sells several of our products. They wanted to make pagers too, so they asked me for permission to use our company name," Hsu said.
However, as the Associated Press notes, when journalists asked for more details about the deal and about the Hungarian company, Hsu not only did not present any document but left without giving any further answers.
Hezbollah promises revenge
The Lebanon-based Islamist organization Hezbollah said today, Wednesday, a day after the attack, it will continue operations to support Palestinians in Gaza, despite a deadly wave of bomb blasts targeting it and blaming Israel.
In a statement on Telegram, Hezbollah said the path was "distinct from the heavy toll that the criminal enemy (Israel) has to expect for Tuesday's massacre." Hassan Nasrallah will deliver his speech tomorrow on the "latest developments", Hezbollah said in a statement.
