Jerusalem — Lebanon’s health minister said eight people were killed and more than 2,700 wounded when pagers they were carrying exploded Tuesday in an operation being blamed on Israel. Hezbollah militants were among those wounded.
Ambulances raced through the streets and the Lebanese Red Cross called on doctors and nurses to come to the hospital and on civilians to donate blood. Lebanese officials said the deaths and large numbers of injuries were caused when pagers exploded and called on the public not to use any pagers in their possession.
Iran state media reported the country’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, was among those wounded by an exploding pager.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah issued a statement Tuesday blaming the blasts on Israel, which has not officially commented.
Israeli analysts said it was the biggest security breach Hezbollah had suffered since the war with Israel began almost a year ago and showed Israel’s intelligence capabilities against Hezbollah.
Lebanese press reports said the pagers were relatively new and had been given to the Hezbollah operatives in the past few months. They had been using pagers to communicate as Israel is able to track and record cellphones.
The alleged Israeli attack increased tensions further between Israel and Lebanon. Local officials near the Israeli border called on residents to stay close to bomb shelters fearing a Hezbollah response.
Earlier Tuesday, Israel had announced the expansion of its war against Hamas in Gaza to include the goal of making it possible for residents of northern Israel to return to homes they evacuated due to clashes with Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border. More than 100,000 have fled on the Lebanese side of the border.
Until now the fighting has been focused in Gaza, where the Hamas-affiliated health ministry says more than 41,000 have been killed, a death toll Israel says includes several thousand militant fighters.
But the focus seems to be shifting to Lebanon, with some Israeli officials calling for a ground campaign to move Hezbollah back from the border and allow the Israeli citizens to return home.
Hezbollah has said it would cease its attacks if there was a deal for a cease-fire in Gaza between Israel and U.S.-designated terror group Hamas. That deal seemed close a few weeks ago, but both sides have hardened their positions.
Qatar’s foreign minister Majed al Ansari said talks are continuing.
“When it comes to the possibility of a deal taking place anytime soon, of course we remain hopeful at every juncture, and we are conducting all the communications that we can during the current time. So I can’t comment on the prospects of a deal taking place right now, but I can tell you that we remain hopeful and we continue with our efforts,” he said.
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