Israel carried out a sophisticated operation against Hezbollah on Tuesday by concealing explosive material within a new shipment of Taiwanese-made pagers imported into Lebanon, according to American and other officials briefed on the operation, The New York Times reported Wednesday.
The pagers, ordered by Hezbollah from Gold Apollo in Taiwan, had reportedly been tampered with before reaching Lebanon. Most were the company's AP924 model, with three other Gold Apollo models also included in the shipment.
According to two officials who spoke to The New York Times on condition of anonymity, explosive material weighing between one to two ounces was implanted next to the battery in each pager. A remotely triggered switch was also embedded to detonate the explosives.
At 3:30 pm in Lebanon, the pagers received a message that appeared to come from Hezbollah's leadership. Instead, the message activated the explosives. Lebanon's health minister told state media that at least 11 people were killed and more than 2,700 injured.
Three officials stated that the devices were programmed to beep for several seconds before exploding.
Hezbollah has accused Israel of orchestrating the attack but has provided limited details of its understanding of the operation. Israel has not commented on the attack or claimed responsibility.
Independent cybersecurity experts who analyzed footage of the attacks concluded that the strength and speed of the explosions were caused by explosive material.
"These pagers were likely modified in some way to cause these types of explosions – the size and strength of the explosion indicates it was not just the battery," Mikko Hypponen, a research specialist at WithSecure and a cybercrime adviser to Europol, told The New York Times.
Keren Elazari, an Israeli cybersecurity analyst and researcher at Tel Aviv University, said the attacks had targeted Hezbollah where they were most vulnerable. Earlier this year, Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, had strictly limited the use of cellphones, which he saw as increasingly vulnerable to Israeli surveillance.
"This attack hit them in their Achilles' heel because they took out a central means of communication," Elazari said. "We have seen these types of devices, pagers, targeted before but not in an attack this sophisticated."
According to several officials, over 3,000 pagers were ordered from the Gold Apollo company in Taiwan. Hezbollah distributed the pagers to their members throughout Lebanon, with some reaching Hezbollah allies in Iran and Syria. Israel's attack affected the pagers that were switched on and receiving messages. It remained unclear on Tuesday precisely when the pagers were ordered and when they arrived in Lebanon.
