Exploding pager attack was precise and effective, legal experts say

'It is hard to imagine a better means of targeting Hezbollah operatives, whoever is behind the exploding devices,' U.K. lawyer says

Published Sep 19, 2024  •  4 minute read

This video grab shows a walkie-talkie that was exploded inside a house, in Baalbek, east Lebanon, on Sept. 18, 2024. Photo by The Associated Press

The Jewish state has not claimed responsibility for an incident in which some 2,700 pagers belonging to Hezbollah terrorists exploded in Lebanon and Syria earlier this week. But critics of Israel accused it of violating international law and of being responsible for the attack.

“Israel’s pager attack in Lebanon detonated thousands of handheld devices across of a slew of public spaces, seriously injuring and killing innocent civilians,” stated U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a member of the so-called “squad” and a frequent critic of Israel.

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“This attack clearly and unequivocally violates international humanitarian law and undermines U.S. efforts to prevent a wider conflict,” Ocasio-Cortez stated. “Congress needs a full accounting of the attack, including an answer from the State Department as to whether any U.S. assistance went into the development or deployment of this technology.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, which was among the organizations that blamed Israel for being attacked on October 7, called for the Biden administration “to condemn the Israeli government for killing children and maiming numerous civilians in Lebanon by detonating bombs reportedly placed in pagers without any regard for innocent life.”

“The Israeli government reportedly detonated explosives contained in pagers in Lebanon. Two children and a medical worker are reportedly among the victims of the attack,” CAIR said. “The attack could lead to a spread and escalation of the conflict, analysts say.”

It added that the attack was an Israeli “brazen and wanton act of state terrorism that has killed at least two children and maimed countless people who had nothing to do with the cross-border war.”

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If the attack targeted 2,700 people with ties to Hezbollah, a U.S.-designated terror organization, and struck three additional civilians, that would mean that the operation had about a 99.89% effective rate of targeting terrorists compared to civilians.

“If Israel was responsible, then on available information these seem to be incredibly precise. Rules on targeting are principally necessity, distinction and proportionality,” Natasha Hausdorff, a barrister in the United Kingdom and legal director of UK Lawyers for Israel, told JNS.

“It is hard to imagine a better means of targeting Hezbollah operatives, whoever is behind the exploding devices,” Hausdorff said. “I would ask these individuals which international law they claim was violated.”

David May, the research manager and a senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told JNS that “reportedly, there were explosives within thousands of pagers Hezbollah ordered for its key operatives. These were Hezbollah pagers, not devices for the general public. Beyond that, very few civilians carry pagers in the year 2024, so claims that this operation was indiscriminate are disingenuous.”

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“Hiding explosives in Hezbollah’s personal devices is the best way to target terrorists who hide among civilians,” May said. “This was a pinpoint operation compared to modern urban warfare. Many of the critics of this operation tailor their analysis to their presupposition that Israel is evil and guilty.”

“Hezbollah launched the current round of hostilities on Oct. 8 while Israel was still clearing Hamas fighters out of southern Israel,” he added. “The Iran-backed terrorist group has since launched more than 8,500 rockets at Israel. It doesn’t get to start a war and demand that Israel conduct it as an eye-for-an-eye campaign.”

Erielle Azerrad, an associate at Holtzman Vogel and a senior fellow at the Center for the Middle East and International Law at George Mason University’s Scalia Law School, told JNS that the “outrage is illogical.”

“You would be hard-pressed to design a more targeted campaign designed to reach exclusively terrorists and their communication networks,” she said. “Under the law of armed conflict, proportionality is one of the crucial considerations in order to prevent as many tragic civilian deaths as possible.”

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The terrorist-to-civilian ratio in this instance “is almost unheard of,” according Azerrad. “Instead of applauding Israel’s ingenuity, the international community has turned terrorism on its head — by now defining it as eliminating terrorists,” she added.

“Let’s be clear — in its strategic attack on Hezbollah, Israel used innovative methods to carry out a precise military operation, maximizing the elimination of terrorists while minimizing harm to civilians by targeting military communication devices,” stated U.S. Representative Brad Sherman of California.

“Iran’s ambassador must explain why he had a Hezbollah military communication device, given Iran’s long history of using its ‘diplomats’ to carry out terror. This includes a plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States and target dissidents abroad, especially in Europe,” Sherman stated. “In war, it’s impossible to fully prevent harm to civilians — especially when Hezbollah operates in Beirut’s densest civilian areas.”

“Some impacted by this operation may be civilians due to Hezbollah’s use of civilians as human shields and their use of soldiers” who are 18, he added.

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