The brewing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah has killed more than 600 people in recent days, displaced thousands in Lebanon and brought the Middle East to the brink of an all-out war. The US and France are working to avoid an escalation of hostilities and ensure the return of displaced people.
After an almost year-long war with Hamas in Gaza, Israel has shifted its focus towards ally Hezbollah in multiple airstrikes at Lebanon that has killed 569 people since Monday. Lebanon has appealed to the US for help in stopping Israel's offensive as fears of an all-out war surge in the Middle East.
Thousands of people fleeing heavy bombardment in southern Lebanon have sought refuge in makeshift shelters across Beirut, as Israeli airstrikes intensify across the border.
Rinson Jose, 39, was the owner of a Bulgaria shell company that reportedly paid a British firm to obtain the pagers. So far, there is no indication that he was aware of the plot to detonate communication devices in Lebanon, which killed 39 people in two days.
Lebanese authorities banned walkie-talkies and pagers from being taken on flights from Beirut airport. The move comes after thousands of such devices exploded during a deadly attack on Hezbollah this week, killing several and leaving numerous others injured.
The attacks on Hezbollah communications equipment sowed fear across Lebanon, with people abandoning electronic devices for fear of carrying bombs in their pockets.
three technical strikes have been reported in Lebanon in the last 3 days. First there were serial blasts in the pagers used by Hezbollah fighters. After that blasts were also reported in walkie talkies that were used for communication.
According to several media reports, Israel had reserved the pager blasts as an opening blow to Hezbollah in case of an all-out war. However, these plans were accelerated when a couple of Hezbollah members became suspicious of the plot and raised the matter with their superiors.
The walkie-talkie explosions in Lebanon on Wednesday killed 20 people and wounded over 450 others a day after thousands of pagers detonated on Tuesday. Images of the exploded walkie-talkies showed labels bearing the name of Japanese radio communications company ICOM.
At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 were injured after thousands of pagers used by Hezbollah militant group exploded on Tuesday. Hezbollah has promised "fair punishment" for Israel and said it was the "biggest security breach" the country has seen in years.
A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo months before the Tuesday explosions. Images of destroyed pagers showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo.
Around 3,000 of the pagers used in Lebanon exploded when Israel reportedly sent a "cryptic message", killing nine people and wounding thousands. This could be one of the most advanced warfare against Hezbollah, which has sworn punishment against Israel.
Hamas sources said Meshaal is expected to be chosen as the paramount leader of the group to replace Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Iran in the early hours of Wednesday, with Tehran and Hamas vowing retribution against Israel.
Israel carried out the strike in Beirut against Fuad Shukr, a senior Hezbollah commander allegedly responsible for the Golan Heights attack on Saturday that killed 12. Israel blames the Iran-backed militant group in Lebanon, which has denied any role in the attack, amid boiling regional tensions.
Flights at Beirut Airport have been cancelled or delayed due to disruptions in the schedule of Lebanon's Middle East Airlines (MEA). The airline has cited insurance risks as the reason for these disruptions amid escalating tensions between Israel and the armed political group Hezbollah.
Earlier, in January also, the Lebanon-based Hezbollah group launched at least 62 rockets towards northern Israel in what it called an "initial response" to the targeted killing of senior Hamas leader.
The Lebanese Red Cross said its teams recovered 20 bodies from the site of the explosion in the northern village of Tleil and evacuated 79 people who were injured or suffered burns in the blast.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun vowed to continue investigations into the explosions that rocked Beirut on August 4, killing 171 people and wounding around 6,000 others.
Beirut, July 9: A large explosion rocked a stronghold of the Shiite militant Hezbollah group south of the Lebanese capital on Tuesday, setting several cars on fire, sending a thick plume of black smoke billowing
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