Pager bombs have no place in a just war

The

exploding pagers and walkie-talkies targeting members of Hezbollah

in Lebanon were certainly an espionage and technological coup. Few people on the spot or reading about them from far away could fail to be amazed. But the explosions on Sept 17 and Sept 18 were also very likely war crimes – terrorist attacks by a state that has consistently condemned terrorist attacks on its own citizens.

Yes, the devices most probably were being used by Hezbollah operatives for military purposes. This might make them a legitimate target in the continuous cross-border battles between Israel and Hezbollah. But the attacks, which killed at least 37 people and wounded thousands of others, came when the operatives were not operating; they had not been mobilised and they were not militarily engaged. Rather, they were at home with their families, sitting in cafes, shopping in food markets – among civilians who were randomly killed and injured.