Pager and walkie-talkie attacks in Lebanon 'crossed all red lines' and are a 'declaration of war', says Hezbollah chief
19 September 2024, 17:15
Hezbollah's leader has accused Israel of "crossing all red lines" after pager and walkie-talkie blast attacks in Lebanon, warning that they could be a "declaration of war".
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Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah accused Israel of carrying out massacres, with the intention of killing "5,000 people in two minutes".
Some 4,000 pagers carried by Hezbollah members exploded on Tuesday afternoon. A day later, 1,000 walkie-talkies exploded.
The attacks on the communications equipment killed 37 people in total and wounded around 3,000 - with children among those hurt.
In his first address since the attacks, Nasrallah said "the enemy has actually crossed over all the red lines".
He went on to say: "We'll call them the 'Tuesday massacre' and the 'Wednesday massacre'.
"Many disasters were avoided, as many wounds were minor, and a number of these beepers were switched off, while others had not yet been distributed."
Lebanon rocked by more exploding devices as Israel declares new phase of war
The explosions "happened in hospitals, in pharmacies, hospitals, in markets, in shops, in houses, in cars... in streets where many civilians were along with women and children", he said.
He added: "This could be called a declaration of war. We have received a very hard hit, but this is the state of war.
"Through this experience and its lessons, we will be stronger and more powerful."
During the address, a sonic boom was heard over Beirut.
Lebanese residents, already on edge following this week's blasts, were panicked fearing a major escalation.
Just before the speech, Israel launched a fresh wave of strikes against Hezbollah targets.
The IDF confirmed that it had approved plans for the northern area in a statement.
"For decades, Hezbollah has weaponised civilian homes, dug tunnels beneath them, and used civilians as human shields," it said.
"The IDF is operating to bring security to northern Israel in order to enable the return of residents to their homes, as well as to achieve all of the war goals."
