‘New era’ of war beginning, Israel says, as more Hezbollah devices explode across Lebanon

Declaring on Wednesday that a “new era” of war was upon us, Israel implicitly accepted responsibility for the surprise twin attacks against Hezbollah that have brought the Middle East once again to the verge of wider bloodshed.

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Nearly two days after Hezbollah members’ pagers were targeted by explosions that resulted in many fatalities, including children, and over 2,800 injuries, walkie-talkies exploded in Beirut and other southern regions of Lebanon.

The explosions on Wednesday left over 450 people injured and at least 20 dead, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant seemed to allude to the explosions on Tuesday after first refusing to comment. Gallant was visiting the Ramat-David Air Force installation in northern Israel on Wednesday.

According to Gallant, “this war is entering a new era, and we need to adapt ourselves.” He commended the “outstanding accomplishments” of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as well as the nation’s intelligence agency Mossad and security force Shin Bet.

Although CNN had earlier stated that the IDF and Mossad worked together on Tuesday’s operation, Gallant’s statement appears to be the first time an Israeli official has admitted Israel’s involvement in the twin assaults.

Israel launched the pager attack in a “use it or lose it” moment when it thought Hezbollah had found the capability, an Israeli national security expert later told CNN.

The pager explosions occurred just hours after Israel decided to add a new war goal to

Tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee southern Lebanon and northern Israel as a result of nearly a year of token exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel. This is the first time that the official war goal of returning Israeli citizens has been declared, even though it has long been recognized as a political necessity for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration.

Netanyahu reaffirmed his commitment on Wednesday to “bring back the residents of the north safely to their homes.”

The elite 98th Division of the IDF is being relocated from Gaza to northern Israel, a person with direct knowledge of the situation informed CNN. According to Gallant, “the center of gravity is moving north.” The implication is that we are directing our efforts, assets, and energy in the direction of the north.

Fresh wave of strikes

The Lebanese Red Cross sent out dozens of ambulance personnel on Wednesday to assist with the rescue and evacuation of injured people following the nationwide explosion of walkie-talkies.

Attendees at a Hezbollah burial in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Wednesday reported the pandemonium as walkie-talkies seemed to go off at approximately 5 p.m. local time (10 a.m. ET).

The witness, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, told CNN they heard shouting and a huge blast. They say the man had his hands blown off and was covered in blood after his wireless device burst.

In the meantime, images appeared of walkie-talkies that had been destroyed by the blasts.

The Lebanese Civil Defense stated it was attempting to put out fires that broke out in 60 residences and businesses following

The walkie-talkies were an ICOM (a Japanese company) model that was discontinued, according to Lebanon’s ministry of communications. The ministry stated that the IC-V82 devices were not provided by an authorized agent, had no official authorization, and had not undergone security services vetting.

In a statement released on Wednesday, ICOM stated that it was looking into the reports and that the model connected to the explosions was taken off the market ten years ago. Despite the firm’s website claiming that all IC-V82 devices in circulation are counterfeit, ICOM stated that it was unable to ascertain if the devices were sent by the company or were counterfeit.