A modern ‘Trojan Horse’: two days of mayhem in Lebanon

A photo taken on September 18, 2024, in Beirut's southern suburbs shows the remains of exploded pagers on display at an undisclosed location. (AFP)
A photo taken on September 18, 2024, in Beirut's southern suburbs shows the remains of exploded pagers on display at an undisclosed location. (AFP)
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Updated 21 September 2024
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A modern ‘Trojan Horse’: two days of mayhem in Lebanon

A modern ‘Trojan Horse’: two days of mayhem in Lebanon
  • The explosions were felt Hezbollah’s strongholds throughout Lebanon: the southern Beirut suburbs, the south of the country and the Bekaa Valley in the east, as well as in Syria

PARIS: It’s around 3:30 in the afternoon on September 17. People in Lebanon are going about their daily business, doing the shopping, having a haircut, conducting meetings.
Hundreds of pagers across the country, and even outside its borders, then simultaneously bleep with a message and explode, wounding and killing their owners and also bystanders.
The communications devices were used by members of the Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, which swiftly blamed Israel for the operation, as did several international media organizations.
Israel, according to its convention for operations outside its borders, neither confirmed nor denied the charge.
But observers say that the simultaneous explosions bear all the hallmarks of an operation by Israel, which appears to have infiltrated the supply chain of the pager production and inserted tiny but potent explosives inside.
Israel may have even set up a shell company to supply the devices to Hezbollah in a years-long project that would seem fantastical even in an espionage thriller, according to analysts.
But that was not the end. A day later, on September 18, around the same time in the afternoon, another low-fi gadget, the walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah cadres, exploded, even amid the funerals for those killed in the pager attacks.
The subsequent day, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, who himself had told group members to use low-fi devices so as not to be targeted by Israel through the positioning of their smartphones, made his first public comments, admitting an “unprecedented blow” but also vowing “tough retribution and just punishment” for Israel.
Even though there is next to no doubt Israel was behind the operation, questions abounded. Why now? Is this the start of the widely-feared Israeli offensive into southern Lebanon? Or has Israel simply activated the explosives now simply because it feared the whole operation risked being compromised?

The explosions were felt Hezbollah’s strongholds throughout Lebanon: the southern Beirut suburbs, the south of the country and the Bekaa Valley in the east, as well as in Syria.
At least 37 people were killed in the two attacks and thousands injured.
The wounded included Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon. But those killed also included a 10-year-old girl and another child. As the hospitals filled up the most common wounds were mutilated hands and eyes.
“Hezbollah suffered a very serious blow on a tactical level, a very impressive and comprehensive one that affects the operational side, the cognitive side,” said Yoram Schweitzer, a former intelligence officer now at the The Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University.
Peter Harling, founder of the Synaps Lab think tank added: “The targets may have been Hezbollah members, but many were caught in the midst of their ordinary lives, and in the heart of their communities.”
“This is also a breach that is extraordinarily hard to explain.”
UN rights chief Volker Turk warned that the simultaneous targeting of thousands of individuals “whether civilians or members of armed groups” without knowledge as to who was around them at the time “violates international human rights law.”
International humanitarian law prohibits the use of “booby traps” precisely to avoid putting civilians at grave risk and “produce the devastating scenes that continue to unfold across Lebanon,” said Lama Fakih, Middle East and North Africa Director at Human Rights Watch.

Espionage professionals have meanwhile expressed their admiration for how the operation was put together.
“It’s not a technological feat,” said a person working for a European intelligence service, asking not to be named. But “it’s the result of human intelligence and heavy logistics.”
The small devices, bearing the name of the firm Gold Apollo in Taiwan, were intercepted by Israeli services before their arrival in Lebanon, according to multiple security sources who spoke to AFP, asking not to be named.
But the Taiwanese company denied having manufactured them and pointed to its Hungarian partner BAC.
Founded in 2022, the company is registered in Budapest. Its CEO, Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono, appears there as the only employee.
The devices in question have never been on Hungarian soil, according to the Hungarian authorities.
The New York Times, citing three intelligence sources, said BAC was “part of an Israeli front” with at least two other shell companies were created as well to mask the real identities of the people creating the pagers who were Israeli intelligence officers.
It described the pagers as a “modern day Trojan Horse” after the wooden horse said to have been used by the Greeks to enter the city of Troy in the Trojan War.

The attack comes nearly a year after Hezbollah ally Hamas carried out its October 7 attack on Israel, sparking the war in Gaza.
The focus of Israel’s firepower has since been on the Palestinian territory, but Hezbollah fighters and Israeli troops have exchanged fire almost daily across the border region since October, forcing thousands on both sides to flee their homes.
Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the focus of the war was shifting toward Lebanon, while the government said securing the northern front was a key objective, in order to allow Israelis evacuated from the area to return home.
Schweitzer said that despite the spectacular nature of the device operation it did not represent the end of Israel’s work to degrade Hezbollah.
“I don’t think this impressive operation that has its tactical gains... is getting into the strategic layers yet.
“It does not change the equation, it is not a decisive victory. But it sends another signal to Hezbollah, Iran and others,” he said.
 

 


Civilians bear brunt in ‘catastrophic’ Lebanon conflict, UN official says

Civilians bear brunt in ‘catastrophic’ Lebanon conflict, UN official says
Updated 57 min 26 sec ago
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Civilians bear brunt in ‘catastrophic’ Lebanon conflict, UN official says

Civilians bear brunt in ‘catastrophic’ Lebanon conflict, UN official says
  • Imran Riza, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, said the pace of displacement since Sept. 23 had exceeded worst case scenarios
  • “The level of trauma, the level of fear among the population, has been extreme,” he said

BEIRUT: Civilians are bearing the brunt of a “truly catastrophic” situation in Lebanon, a senior UN official said, urging respect for the rules of war nearly two weeks since Israel launched a major offensive against the armed group Hezbollah.
With around 1 million people in Lebanon impacted, Imran Riza, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, said the pace of displacement since Sept. 23 had exceeded worst case scenarios, and too much damage was being done to civilian infrastructure.
“What we saw from Sept. 23 on is truly catastrophic,” Riza said in an interview with Reuters on Thursday. He was referring to the day when Israel dramatically ramped up airstrikes in Lebanon, killing more than 500 people in a single day, according to Lebanese government figures.
“The level of trauma, the level of fear among the population, has been extreme,” he said.
Israel says its campaign against the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah aims to secure the return home of Israelis evacuated from areas near the Lebanese border as a result of nearly a year of Hezbollah fire into northern Israel.
The Lebanese government says around 1.2 million people have been displaced by Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley, the southern suburbs of Beirut and other parts of the country. Some have been killed in Israeli strikes after having been displaced.
“You’ve got people being displaced from one place to another, thinking they were going to a safe place, and then that being struck,” Riza said.
Riza said 97 medical and emergency workers had been killed — the majority of them in the last 10 days. There has been too much damage to civilian infrastructure, and civilians have been “bearing the great brunt of what’s been going on,” he said.
He noted that international humanitarian law requires that humanitarians be allowed to access people in need, and that civilian infrastructure and water systems be protected.
“This is what we call for when we’re saying respect the rules of war in this,” he said. “Unfortunately, we are seeing a situation where we have to go back to everybody and advocate for these basics in terms of protecting civilians.”
The conflict began a nearly a year ago when Hezbollah opened fire in solidarity with its Palestinian ally Hamas, at the start of the Gaza war. It marks the worst conflict since Hezbollah fought a 34-day war with Israel in 2006.
Riza and Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Tuesday launched a $426 million appeal to mobilize resources for civilians affected by the conflict.
Lebanon was already suffering myriad crises before this conflict began.
As a result, Riza said Lebanon was less well placed to deal with conflict now than in 2006: “People don’t have buffers the way they had in 2006, on the other hand the institutions that are there to help them are much weaker.”


Yemen’s government asks Yemenis to leave Lebanon as war intensifies

Yemen’s government asks Yemenis to leave Lebanon as war intensifies
Updated 03 October 2024
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Yemen’s government asks Yemenis to leave Lebanon as war intensifies

Yemen’s government asks Yemenis to leave Lebanon as war intensifies
  • Houthis claim their military forces launched barrage of drones at ‘vital targets’ in the Israeli capital in support of Palestinian and Lebanese people
  • Yemenis who wish to leave Lebanon should first request a transit visit from the Syrian government

AL-MUKALLA: Yemen’s government has asked its citizens in Lebanon to leave as the war between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah escalates.
The Yemeni embassy in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, has requested that Yemenis in Lebanon travel by land to the Lebanon-Syria border due to the lack of charter flights for air evacuation.
Yemenis who wish to leave Lebanon should first request a transit visit from the Syrian government, it said.
The Yemeni embassy will arrange buses and other transport to take them by land from Lebanon to Syria and then to Jordan, where they will be transferred to Yemeni Sanaa or Aden airports on Yemenia Airways flights, according to the Yemeni embassy.
This comes as Yemenis in Lebanon have urged their government to evacuate them immediately as Israel has increased its airstrikes on the Lebanese capital and other areas of the country, targeting Hezbollah locations.
However, Yemenis reject the embassy’s proposal to evacuate them by land to Syria, saying that the Syria border crossing with Lebanon is congested with thousands of people fleeing the war and also prone to Israeli airstrikes.
Mushtaq Anaam, a Yemeni national living in Beirut’s Cola, told Arab News that a recent Israeli airstrike struck 70 meters from where he lives and that he refused to travel from Lebanon to Syria by land after hearing an Israeli military spokesperson threaten to strike the Lebanon-Syria border, claiming it to be an entry point for weapons to Hezbollah.
“I’d rather stay here than travel through Syria, which is a dangerous route that has been bombed repeatedly,” said Anaam, who is a postgraduate student in Lebanon.
Anaam suggested that the Yemeni government work with the Lebanese authorities to allow Yemenia Airways planes to transport them or that they be evacuated by sea.
“The situation here is dire, and the war is becoming more intense by the day,” he said.
However, the Yemeni embassy in Beirut said that it was unable to secure a flight to evacuate Yemenis by air and that the only viable option was to travel by land through Syria.
The Yemeni embassy in Beirut and Yemeni foreign ministry officials were unavailable on Thursday to respond to Arab News’ requests for comment.
Meanwhile, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea claimed on Thursday that their military forces launched a barrage of drones at “vital targets” in the Israeli capital in support of the Palestinian and Lebanese people, vowing to carry out more attacks on Israel until it ended its war in Palestine and Lebanon.
The Israeli military said that it shot down a drone over the Mediterranean Gush Dan on Thursday morning, while another landed in an open area, but did not elaborate on the origins of the two drones.
Israeli warplanes launched a series of airstrikes on Yemen’s western city of Hodeidah on Sunday, targeting ports, power plants and fuel tanks in response to a Houthi missile attack on Israel’s capital.
Since November, the Houthis have attacked more than 100 commercial and naval ships in the Red Sea and other seas off Yemen, using drones, ballistic missiles and drone boats in a campaign that the Yemeni militia claims is in support of the Palestinian people.


Biden says ‘discussing’ possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities

Biden says ‘discussing’ possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
Updated 03 October 2024
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Biden says ‘discussing’ possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities

Biden says ‘discussing’ possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
  • When asked by a reporter if he supported Israel striking Iran’s oil facilities, Biden said “we’re discussing that. I think that would be a little... anyway“
  • Biden said he did not expect any immediate action from Israel

WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden said he was discussing possible Israeli strikes on Iranian oil facilities, in comments that sent oil prices spiking Thursday just a month before the US presidential election.
Biden told reporters at the White House however that he was not expecting Israel to launch any retaliation for Tehran’s missile barrage on Israel before Thursday at least.
When asked by a reporter if he supported Israel striking Iran’s oil facilities, Biden said “we’re discussing that. I think that would be a little... anyway.”
Oil prices jumped five percent over concerns about the Middle East after Biden spoke.
A rise in oil prices could be hugely damaging for Biden’s Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democrat confronts Republican former president Donald Trump in a November 5 election where the cost of living is a major issue.
Biden said he did not expect any immediate action from Israel — even if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has recently paid little heed to calls for restraint as he targets the Iran-allied Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.
“First of all, we don’t ‘allow’ Israel, we advise Israel. And there is nothing going to happen today,” Biden told reporters when asked if he would allow Israel to retaliate against Iran.
Biden said on Wednesday that he would not back Israel attacking Iranian nuclear sites.
Iran launched around 200 rockets in a direct missile attack on Israel on Tuesday, prompting Netanyahu to warn that Tehran would pay.
Iran said it was in retaliation for the killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah.
Hezbollah has been launching rockets at Israel since shortly after the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel by Iran’s Palestinian ally Hamas, and Israel’s crushing retaliatory offensive in Gaza.


Jordanian, Japanese foreign ministers urge de-escalation amid Middle East tensions

Jordanian, Japanese foreign ministers urge de-escalation amid Middle East tensions
Updated 03 October 2024
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Jordanian, Japanese foreign ministers urge de-escalation amid Middle East tensions

Jordanian, Japanese foreign ministers urge de-escalation amid Middle East tensions
  • During their phone call, the ministers warned that the rising tensions posed serious risks to both regional and international peace and security

AMMAN: Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and his Japanese counterpart Iwaya Takeshi held urgent talks on Thursday, addressing the escalating violence in the Middle East and emphasizing the critical need for peace.

During their phone call, the ministers warned that the rising tensions posed serious risks to both regional and international security, calling for immediate efforts to prevent the situation from spiraling into a broader conflict, Jordan News Agency reported.

Both ministers stressed the importance of implementing a ceasefire in Lebanon and reaffirmed their commitment to enforcing UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for a cessation of hostilities in the region.

The discussion also touched on efforts to secure a prisoner exchange deal in Gaza, aimed at also achieving an immediate and lasting ceasefire in the enclave.

The Jordanian minister underscored the urgency of halting Israeli military operations in Gaza to prevent further escalation.

He also called for an end to Israeli actions in the West Bank and condemned extremist incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, a flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Both ministers discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza as well as Lebanon, where nearly one million Lebanese citizens have been displaced due to ongoing Israeli aggression.

Safadi emphasized the need for coordinated humanitarian aid to both regions, urging swift action to alleviate the suffering caused by the conflict.

He reiterated that Jordan would deploy all available resources to safeguard its security and stability amid the regional turmoil, ensuring that the kingdom would not become embroiled in external conflicts.

In marking the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Jordan and Japan, the ministers also explored ways to enhance cooperation between the two countries in various fields.


Jordan to establish obstetrics and neonatal field hospital in Gaza by mid-November

Jordan to establish obstetrics and neonatal field hospital in Gaza by mid-November
Updated 03 October 2024
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Jordan to establish obstetrics and neonatal field hospital in Gaza by mid-November

Jordan to establish obstetrics and neonatal field hospital in Gaza by mid-November
  • Facility first of its kind in the world to focus specifically on maternal and newborn healthcare in field setting

LONDON: Jordan will set up a field hospital focused specifically on obstetrics and neonatal care to Gaza’s Khan Younis region by mid-November, the director general of the kingdom’s Royal Medical Services said on Thursday.

The deployment will occur in four phases, Dr. Yousef Zureikat said, culminating in the hospital being fully operational and ready to receive patients next month.

The facility will be the first of its kind in the world to focus specifically on maternal and newborn healthcare in a field setting, Jordan News Agency reported.

The project, which comes under a royal directive from King Abdullah II, will be operated with oversight from the Jordan Armed Forces and also in partnership with Pious Projects, a US-based humanitarian organization.

During a press conference at King Hussein Medical City, Zureikat said that the new hospital will be integrated into the existing Jordanian field hospital “Khan Younis 4.”

This facility already provides advanced medical services, including complex surgeries and prosthetic limb fittings, as part of RMS’s “Restoring Hope” initiative, aimed at providing prosthetics to amputees in Gaza. 

Zureikat said that the new field hospital will be equipped with four operating rooms — one for cesarean sections, another for natural births — as well as five resuscitation beds, 30 postpartum recovery beds, and 10 neonatal incubators. Solar energy will support the facility to ensure continuous and reliable operations.

Zureikat said the hospital will be staffed by a team of 82 professionals, including 55 from the RMS. While patient numbers are unpredictable, he confirmed that medical teams were fully prepared to manage a range of cases and provide essential care to mothers and newborns.

Siting of the hospital is being coordinated with the Gaza Municipality and other local authorities, with rehabilitation work already in progress.