20 dead, 450 wounded as walkie talkies, other electronic devices explode across Lebanon

At least one of the blasts took place near a funeral organized by Hezbollah for those killed the previous day when thousands of pagers used by the group detonated across the country, Reuters reported.

Lebanon’s official news agency reported that solar energy systems exploded in homes in several areas of Beirut and in southern Lebanon, wounding at least one girl.

The explosions come even as the group said on Wednesday it had attacked Israeli artillery positions with rockets in the first strike at its arch-foe since pager blasts wounded thousands of its members in Lebanon and raised the prospect of a wider Middle East war.

The hand-held radios or walkie talkies were purchased by Hezbollah five months ago, around the same time that the pagers were bought, Reuters reported quoting a security source.

Tuesday’s blasts, dubbed as the group’s “biggest security breach” in its history, killed at least 12 people, including two children, and wounded nearly 3,000, including many of the militant group’s fighters and Iran’s envoy to Beirut.

Lebanese officials have claimed that Israel had tampered with pagers imported to the country. The company behind the pagers has said that while its brand was on the devices, they were manufactured by a Budapest-based company.

According to a report in the New York Times, around 1 to 2 ounces of explosive material was implanted next to the battery in each pager. Officials said that a switch was also embedded that could be triggered remotely to detonate the explosives.

Meanwhile, Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant has declared the start of a “new phase” of war as army turns attention to northern front with Lebanon, Reuters reported.

Speaking to Israeli troops on Wednesday, Gallant said, “We are at the start of a new phase in the war — it requires courage, determination and perseverance.” He made no mention of the explosions of electronic devices but praised the work of Israel’s army and security agencies, saying “the results are very impressive.”

In his comments, Gallant said that after months of fighting Hamas in Gaza, “the center of gravity is shifting to the north by diverting resources and forces.”

– With agency inputs