Israel Uses Pagers as Anti-Terror Weapon in Daring Operation
Israel’s covert use of explosive pagers to target Hezbollah in a historic anti-terror operation.
2 min read
In a groundbreaking anti-terror operation, Israel turned pagers into a weapon of mass disruption during a critical moment in its conflict with Hezbollah. On September 17, 2024, thousands of Hezbollah members received a simple message on their pagers: a beep followed by an explosion. The result was devastating, with dozens of terrorists killed and thousands more injured.
The operation, which involved the use of pagers and later walkie-talkies, marked a bold and innovative approach in the fight against terrorism. Despite the apparent anachronism of using pagers, which had largely fallen out of use by the early 2000s, Israel leveraged their untraceable nature to communicate with Hezbollah members, making them a potent tool in the conflict.
According to reports, Hezbollah had ordered thousands of pagers from a Taiwanese company, Gold Apollo, unaware that Israel had secretly embedded explosives into the devices. This operation, which had been planned for over a decade, was a form of ‘supply chain interdiction’ that demonstrated Israel’s strategic ingenuity.
The CIA had long been hesitant to employ such tactics due to the high risk to civilians, but Israel’s operation proved to be both effective and daring. The planning involved multiple layers of shell companies and Israeli intelligence assets, with some workers unknowingly aiding the operation.
The impact was immediate and widespread. In one harrowing incident, a pager exploded in a Beirut supermarket, injuring over 1,000 people. The event was captured in a video that quickly went viral, highlighting the chaotic and tragic consequences of the operation.
Now, filmmaker Justin Folk is set to release a documentary titled Paging Hezbollah, which will explore the details of the operation, featuring interviews with key figures such as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, General David Petraeus, and former Mossad Director David Barnea. The film, set to premiere on October 30, promises to shed light on the complexity and daring of this historic event.
Source: PJ Media
