Hezbollah Beacon Explosions: How Could Israel Cause These Deadly Explosions?

Nine people, including two young girls, were killed and thousands maimed in Lebanon today after pagers used by Hezbollah fighters exploded simultaneously across the country.

The wave of sudden and unexpected explosions, which began around 3:45 p.m. local time (1:45 p.m. GMT) and lasted for about an hour, caused widespread panic and chaotic scenes in the southern suburbs of Beirut, the Bekaa Valley and southern Lebanon.

David Kennedy, a former intelligence analyst for the US National Security Agency, told CNN: “It’s more likely that Israel had human operatives… with Hezbollah… The pagers would have been implanted with explosives and probably only went off when a certain message was received.

The remains of what is believed to be a pager carried by a Lebanese militant that was detonated earlier today

This afternoon, pagers used by Hezbollah members for essential communications exploded, injuring hundreds.

‘The complexity required to pull this off is staggering. It would require many different intelligence components and execution.

‘Human intelligence (HUMINT) would be the primary method for this, along with intercepting the supply chain to make adjustments to the pagers.’

No one has claimed responsibility for the mass incident, although Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have blamed Israel. Israel has not yet commented.

There are currently two main theories as to how the detonations occurred.

One theory is that the pagers were packed with explosives and were activated remotely. The other theory is that there was a cybersecurity breach that caused the pagers’ lithium-ion batteries to overheat and explode.

A source close to Hezbollah claimed the incident was a direct result of an “Israeli breach” of Hezbollah communications, but this has not been confirmed.

Another official said the explosions were likely caused by the lithium batteries that power the pagers.

Lithium-ion batteries are widely used in consumer electronics, but they can overheat and catch fire, and in some cases, they can even explode violently.

This is due to a phenomenon called thermal runaway, a chemical chain reaction that occurs when the battery undergoes a rapid change in temperature. This reaction is triggered when the battery overheats, leaks, or is overcharged.

As this chemical reaction progresses, energy can be suddenly released, causing devices to explode with tremendous force and heat.

Police officers inspect a car in which a pager exploded, Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, September 17, 2024

It is possible that Israeli forces or another party hacked these devices and remotely overcharged the battery, causing a thermal runaway.

Pagers often use unencrypted communication channels and outdated software, making them an easy target for attack.

One-way pagers are passive receivers and therefore cannot be tracked. However, when a message is sent, all pager transmitters in the vicinity are activated.

By hijacking the broadcast signal, an attacker could theoretically infect all pagers on the network simultaneously.

It is possible that a virus has been implanted into Hezbollah’s pager network and could remain active on the devices until it has spread widely.

This malware could be activated remotely or via a pre-programmed timer.

Video footage shows the devices received a message just before they exploded.

This signal could have triggered the explosion, but it could also have been used to ensure that the fighters were holding the explosives when they detonated.

If these explosions are the result of a cyber attack, this is an exceptionally rare instance of cyber warfare disrupting physical infrastructure.

Earlier this year, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah urged his organization’s members to resume using pagers for essential communications, arguing that modern smartphones are more vulnerable to cyberattacks by Israeli forces.

But like cell phones and many other consumer electronics, pagers also rely on rechargeable lithium batteries to function.

The battery can reach temperatures of 590 degrees Celsius (1,100 F) when ignited.

Israel has used this method in the past, most notably in the 1996 assassination of Hamas’s chief bomb maker, Yahya Ayyash.

Shin Bet, the shadowy intelligence agency, planted 15 grams of RDX explosives in Ayyash’s phone while he was on the phone with his father.

Although Israel has long had a policy of never confirming or denying the killings it is alleged to be involved in, former Shin Bet Carmi Gillon confirmed the story in 2012.