Exploding Pagers Injure Thousands Across Lebanon

Wireless communication pagers, carried by thousands, exploded around the same time across Lebanon on Tuesday, injuring over 2,700 people and killing eight, in what security experts suspect was a sophisticated Israeli intelligence operation. New York Times: Hundreds of pagers blew up at the same time across Lebanon on Tuesday in an apparently coordinated attack that killed eight people and injured more than 2,700, health officials said on Tuesday. […] Hezbollah said that pagers belonging to its members had exploded and accused Israel of being behind the attack. The Israeli military declined to comment.

[…] Three officials briefed on the attack said that it had targeted hundreds of pagers belonging to Hezbollah operatives who have used such devices for years to make it harder for their messages to be intercepted. The devices were programmed to beep for several seconds before exploding, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. Further reading: Reuters; CNN; NPR; Fox News; and WSJ.

Edward Snowden said, “If it were iPhones that were leaving the factory with explosives inside, the media would be a hell of a lot faster to cotton on to what a horrific precedent has been set today. Nothing can justify this. It’s a crime. A crime. And everyone in the world is less safe for it.”