How did Hezbollah get the pagers that exploded in Lebanon?

Hundreds of pagers belonging to the equipped radical Hezbollah exploded connected Tuesday successful Lebanon, sidesplitting astatine slightest 12 people and wounding astir 2,750. Some pagers belonging to Hezbollah besides exploded successful Syria, starring to immoderate injuries.

Lebanon, Hezbollah and the group’s allies person each blamed Israel. But what truly happened? Many analysts judge the reply mightiness prevarication successful however Hezbollah got the pagers successful the archetypal spot — due to the fact that that mightiness clasp clues to whether the devices were tampered with to facilitate the explosions.

Here’s what we cognize and what experts judge mightiness person happened:

About 3:30pm (12:30 GMT), hundreds of pagers each implicit Lebanon started exploding.

Hezbollah released a connection connected Tuesday saying 2 of its fighters and a miss were killed arsenic “pagers belonging to employees of assorted Hezbollah units and institutions exploded”.

The Iran-backed radical attributed the pager blasts to Israel, which has been progressive successful tit-for-tat attacks with Hezbollah crossed the Lebanon-Israel borderline since the opening of Israel’s warfare connected Gaza.

Israel’s subject has refused to remark connected the explosions. Hezbollah has promised retaliation against Israel.

A Lebanese information root and different root told the Reuters quality bureau that the Mossad, Israel’s spy agency, planted explosives successful 5,000 pagers that Hezbollah had ordered months earlier the explosions. The sources said a codification was simultaneously sent to 3,000 of the pagers, triggering the explosions.

While the nonstop mechanics utilized for the pager explosions is unclear astatine the moment, immoderate experts speculate that the vigor strategy that the pagers trust connected was hacked, perchance done a doctored code. The batteries of the pagers could person been triggered to overheat, starring to a process called thermal runaway, which successful crook caused the pager batteries to explode.

Some analysts, including Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a erstwhile British service serviceman and chemic weapons expert, person speculated that the pagers whitethorn besides person been tampered with on the proviso concatenation and wired to detonate connected command.

But Brussels-based subject and governmental expert Elijah Magnier told Al Jazeera his sources adjacent to the crushed successful Lebanon had shared details from archetypal investigations carried retired by Hezbollah connected pagers that did not explode.

Those investigations suggest that Israel placed 1 to 3 grammes (0.04 to 0.11oz) of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), a almighty explosive, successful each device.

Lebanon faces a scope of sanctions from the United States, European Union and their Western partners. In addition, the US, United Kingdom and their allies, specified arsenic Japan, database Hezbollah among “terrorist” organisations.

That means that companies some registered successful these domains oregon trading with these countries are wary of nonstop transactions, particularly successful technology, with Hezbollah — and often with Lebanon astatine all.

In this case, Magnier said, the pagers procured by Hezbollah were with a 3rd enactment and they sat astatine a larboard for 3 months, awaiting clearances, earlier they were yet moved to the Lebanese group.

Hezbollah suspects that it was during those 3 months that Israel managed to works explosives successful the devices, the subject expert said.

The rechargeable pagers were confiscated and held for immoderate clip earlier being released and shipped to #Lebanon. There, #Israel tempered the pagers and placed the 1-3 gram explosive instrumentality successful each pager.

— Elijah J. Magnier 🇪🇺 (@ejmalrai) September 17, 2024

He added that Hezbollah’s probe truthful acold shows that metallic balls were placed astir the pager batteries, allowing the explosive unit to propel metallic fragments outward, “significantly expanding the lethality of the blast”. He added that this was besides done during the 3 months erstwhile the shipment was connected hold.

But wherever were the pagers made — and when?

Taiwan oregon Hungary?

The trademark of Taiwan pager shaper Gold Apollo has been identified connected the remains of the exploded pagers, which look to beryllium to the company’s AR-924 model.

On Wednesday, the institution released a connection denying that it had manufactured Hezbollah’s pagers and saying it was lone its logo that was connected the devices.

Instead, the pagers had been built by a Hungarian institution called BAC done a licensing deal, the Taiwan steadfast said.

“The plan and manufacturing of the products are wholly handled by BAC,” Gold Apollo said successful a statement. “We lone supply marque trademark authorisation and person nary engagement successful the plan manufacturing of this product.” BAC has not commented truthful far.

The grounds truthful acold suggests that Hezbollah acquired the pagers astir February erstwhile the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, ordered members to halt utilizing cellphones due to the fact that they could beryllium easy intercepted and monitored by Israeli intelligence.

What bash we cognize astir BAC?

BAC Consulting is based successful Hungary’s capital, Budapest.

Reuters reported that the stated code for BAC is simply a peach-coloured gathering successful a residential area. While the company’s sanction is posted determination connected an A4 expanse of paper, an anonymous root contiguous astatine the gathering told the quality bureau the institution does not person a carnal beingness astatine the gathering contempt being registered there.

According to LinkedIn, BAC’s CEO is Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono, whose illustration says she has worked for assorted organisations, including UNESCO.

Her illustration says: “We connection in-depth consulting guiding our client’s travel toward innovation, sustainability, and equity portion ensuring connection, and authenticity. Our main services are concern development, absorption consultancy, strategy and concern planning.”

Al Jazeera reached retired to BAC but did not person a response.

The sanction of BAC Consulting KFT is listed connected a expanse of insubstantial pasted connected the model of an bureau gathering successful Budapest, Hungary, wherever the institution is said to beryllium registered [Marton Monus/Reuters]