A fresh wave of explosions ripped across Lebanon on Wednesday afternoon, marking the second consecutive day of coordinated attacks targeting Hezbollah members. This time, the blasts mainly targeted hand-held radios, as well as phones, solar energy systems, and fingerprint reading devices used by the group. Lebanese Health officials confirmed at least 20 people were killed and at least 450 were injured in the latest wave of attacks. Israeli reports suggested the actual death toll could be higher, especially within Hezbollah’s elite Radwan unit, which is believed to have suffered significant losses.
These new explosions follow Tuesday’s devastating blasts, which left at least nine dead and thousands wounded when Hezbollah members’ handheld pagers exploded across Lebanon. The earlier attacks left around 200 people in critical condition, overwhelming local hospitals, according to Lebanon’s Health Minister. Hezbollah has accused Israel of orchestrating the attacks and vowed retaliation, although Israel has remained silent on the accusations.
The two days of explosions come just after Israel set “halting Hezbollah’s attacks” as a key military objective, following its prevention of an assassination attempt by the group. Among the casualties in Tuesday’s blasts were three Hezbollah members, including the son of a Lebanese Member of Parliament and the 10-year-old daughter of a Hezbollah operative.
Our sources tell us that the exploding devices are IC-V82 radios commonly used by Hezbollah operatives, with thousands of devices reportedly affected.
It is still unclear how the explosive devices were triggered. Israeli officials held high-level meetings in response to the escalating violence, while Hezbollah has vowed revenge, raising concerns of further retaliation and a potential escalation in the ongoing conflict.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Wednesday evening in Israel, released a sudden and brief video statement regarding the situation in northern Israel. In the unexpected 10-second clip, Netanyahu declared: “We will return the residents of the north to their homes safely.”
The abrupt nature of this announcement comes amid escalating tensions along Israel’s northern border with Lebanon and follows recent statements by Defense Minister Yoav Galant about shifting military focus northward.
Israel’s Channel 12 reports the Israeli cabinet has authorized Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to make decisions on “defensive and offensive” actions against Hezbollah. This authorization is assessed to include the possibility of engaging in a full-scale conflict.
According to the report, this decision was made during a cabinet meeting earlier this week, coinciding with the addition of a new war goal: returning Israeli residents to the northern region.
The reported authorization gives Netanyahu and Gallant significant latitude in determining Israel’s response to Hezbollah, potentially allowing for rapid decision-making without the need for further cabinet approval.
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