Israel planted explosives in Taiwan-made pagers sold to Hezbollah: US officials

NEW YORK - Israel carried out its operation against Hezbollah on Sept 17 by hiding explosive material within a new batch of Taiwanese-made pagers imported into Lebanon, according to American and other officials briefed on the operation.

The pagers, which Hezbollah had ordered from Gold Apollo in Taiwan, had been tampered with before they reached Lebanon, according to some of the officials.

Most were the company’s AP924 model, though three other Gold Apollo models were included in the shipment.

However,

Taiwan’s Gold Apollo said it did not make the pagers

that were used in the detonations, Reuters reported.

The company’s founder Hsu Ching-Kuang said the pagers used in the explosion were made by a company in Europe that had the right to use the Taiwanese company’s brand. 

The explosive material, as little as 1oz (28g) to 2oz, was implanted next to the battery in each pager, two of the officials said.

A switch was also embedded that could be triggered remotely to detonate the explosives.

At 3.30pm in Lebanon, the pagers received a message that appeared as though it was coming from Hezbollah’s leadership, two of the officials said.

Instead, the message activated the explosives.

Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad told state media that at least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 injured.

The devices were programmed to beep for several seconds before exploding, according to three of the officials.

Hezbollah has accused Israel of orchestrating the attack

, but has described limited details of its understanding of the operation. Israel has not commented on the attack, nor said it was behind it.

The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity given the sensitive nature of the operation.

Independent cyber-security experts who have studied footage of the attacks said it was clear that the strength and speed of the explosions were caused by a type of explosive material.

“These pagers were likely modified in some way to cause these types of explosions – the size and strength of the explosion indicates it was not just the battery,” said Mr Mikko Hypponen, a research specialist at software company WithSecure and a cybercrime adviser to Europol.

Ms Keren Elazari, an Israeli cyber-security analyst and researcher at Tel Aviv University, said the attacks had targeted Hezbollah where it was most vulnerable.

Earlier in 2024, Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah strictly limited the use of cellphones, which he saw as increasingly vulnerable to Israeli surveillance, according to some of the officials as well as security experts.

“This attack hit them in their Achilles’ heel because they took out a central means of communication,” Ms Elazari said. “We have seen these types of devices, pagers, targeted before, but not in an attack this sophisticated.”

More than 3,000 pagers were ordered from Gold Apollo in Taiwan, several of the officials said.

Hezbollah distributed the pagers to its members throughout Lebanon, with some reaching Hezbollah allies in Iran and Syria. Israel’s attack affected the pagers that were switched on and receiving messages.

It remained unclear on Sept 17 precisely when the pagers were ordered and when they arrived in Lebanon. NYTIMES