Lebanon Walkie-Talkie Blasts Kill 20; Concern Of Wider Conflict With Israel Rises | What We Know

A day after pagers detonated in Lebanon, a series of explosions rocked the country again after hand-held radios or walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah members exploded on Wednesday.

The Lebanese health ministry has stated that 20 people were killed and over 450 were injured after the blasts on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the death toll from Tuesday's pager blasts rose to 12, including two children and has left nearly 3,000 injured.

The blasts in Lebanon, which have been labelled as the biggest security breach in Hezbollah's history, played out alongside Israel's ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.

Wednesday's attack also came after Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant declared the start of a "new phase" of the war. "We are opening a new phase in the war. It requires courage, determination and perseverance from us," said Gallant

While Hezbollah, Lebanon and the world have alleged an Israeli link, the Netanyahu-led government has stayed mum about the blasts.

The recent blasts in Lebanon have been viewed as an escalation of the ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Jordan's foreign minister Ayman Safadi has accused Israel of pushing the region to the brink of a regional war.

The United States, a staunch ally of Israel, has denied any involvement in the blasts and stated that it is pursuing "intensive diplomacy" to scale back any escalation of the conflict.

Hezbollah's Use Of Outdated Devices

Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and its members switched out to low-tech communication devices such as pagers and hand-held radios as part of an attempt to evade Israeli surveillance of mobile phones.

Wednesday's attack targeted the walkie talkies used by Hezbollah members. As per reports, this radios showed labels with "ICOM" and "made in Japan" written on them. ICOM is a Japan-based radio communication and technology company.

While a detailed comment from the company is awaited, the models found in Lebanon - IC-V82 - had been phased out by ICOM in 2014.

As per security sources, the hand-held radios had been purchased by Hezbollah members around five months ago, the same time as the pagers.