The Israeli spy agency Mossad allegedly intercepted Hezbollah’s shipment of new pagers months ago and rigged them with high explosives — resulting in the stunning attack on the Lebanese terror group Tuesday, according to a new report.
Mossad agents reportedly placed Pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), a highly explosive material, inside the batteries of the pagers, sources told Sky News Arabia, according to a translation from the Times of Israel.
The devices were then detonated by an external signal that caused the batteries inside to overheat, the sources added.
The complex operation resulted in a mass attack against Hezbollah operatives, killing nine people and leaving some 2,800 others injured when the pagers detonated on Tuesday morning across Lebanon and in parts of Syria.
Hezbollah confirmed that many of its fighters and medics were injured by the blasts, with one official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, calling it the “biggest security breach” since the group began its near-daily attacks on Israel on Oct. 8.
While Israel refused to comment on the attack, Hezbollah and Lebanese officials have blamed the Jewish State, with the terror group vowing revenge.
The devices that detonated were all the latest models acquired by Hezbollah in recent months and distributed to its members, three security sources told Reuters.
Through the use of malware, the devices could’ve seen their batteries overheat and trigger the explosives.
One Hezbollah official told the Wall Street Journal that some members felt their pagers heat up and disposed of them before they detonated.
Back in March, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had warned his fighters not to carry cell phones around, telling them they could be used to track their movements or carry out some kind of targeted strike.
With Post wires
