Hundreds of Hezbollah Fighters Wounded, Some Killed as Hacked Pagers Explode in Mass Attack Caught on Video

At least eight people are reported killed and more than 2,700 people injured in Lebanon and Syria after a remote attack on handheld communication pagers used by militant group Hezbollah caused them to overheat and spontaneously explode on Tuesday.

Under anonymity, speaking to Reuters, one of the group’s officials described the attack as the “biggest security breach” it had suffered in a year, confirming that at least two of its members had been killed. Meanwhile, Iranian state-run IRNA news agency reported that the the nation’s ambassador Mojtaba Amani was wounded by an exploding pager and was in hospital.

Footage aired by regional broadcasters and shared on social media show the moment the pagers detonated. In one clip an explosion near a grocery store cashier. In another clip, an individual was knocked down by a blast while standing at a fruit stand.

Other graphic footage circulating online show individuals bleeding, with injuries to hands and legs.

The explosions occurred across southern Lebanon as ongoing cross-border violence continues with Israel. Al Jazeera journalist Zeina Khodr reported that the pager devices appeared to have been hacked in a coordinated attack, adding that Hezbollah’s leadership banned members from using smartphones just months ago due to Israel’s ability to infiltrate those devices.

One security source in Beirut told Reuters that ambulances were seen speeding through Beirut’s southern suburbs as chaos erupted and blasts continued for up to 30 minutes after the initial detonations.

“Groups of people huddled at the entrance of buildings to check on people they knew who may have been wounded,” one witness told the news agency.

As Lebanese authorities scrambled to assess the full extent of the damage, the health ministry’s crisis operations center reportedly called on all medical workers to rush to hospitals and put out requests for blood donations, warning against using pagers in a bid to prevent further injuries. Lebanese health minister Firas Abiad told Associated Press that around 200 people are critically injured.

The incident comes amid a heightened state of tension between Hezbollah and Israel, who have been locked in relentless exchanges of fire since October 2023, following the war in Gaza.

Update: This story has been updated with additional details and figures regarding casualties.