Two former Israeli intelligence agents have revealed how members of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah used Israeli-made walkie-talkies rigged with explosives for 10 years before detonating them in a surprise attack in September this year.
The two former Mossad agents told CBS News how the service tricked Hezbollah into buying thousands of counterfeit walkie-talkies and pagers without realizing they were made in Israel.
Dozens of people were killed and thousands injured in the attacks. Israel said the attack was designed to target Hezbollah members only, but Lebanese officials said civilians were among the victims.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights described the attack as a war crime.
At the time of the attack, Israel and Hezbollah were locked in a conflict that had escalated since Hezbollah opened fire on Israeli positions a day after Hamas' unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
On September 17, 2024, thousands of pagers exploded simultaneously across Lebanon, especially in areas with a strong Hezbollah presence. The explosions injured or killed users and some people nearby, spreading panic and confusion. The next day, walkie-talkies exploded in the same way, killing and wounding hundreds more.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted Israel's responsibility two months later, Israeli media reported at the time.
In an interview with the BBC's American broadcast partnerThe two former agents revealed the details of the operation.
One agent, Michael, said the Mossad hid an explosive device inside the batteries that powered walkie-talkies, which he said were usually carried in a jacket near the wearer's heart.
He said that Hezbollah unwittingly purchased more than 16,000 walkie-talkies at a “good price” from a fake company 10 years ago.
“We have an amazing range of possibilities to create foreign companies that cannot be traced back to Israel,” Michael said. “Shell companies on shell companies influence the supply chain to our advantage.
“We create an imaginary world. We are a global production company. We write the script, we are the directors, we are the producers, we are the lead actors, and the world is our stage.”
CBS said the operation expanded two years ago to include pagers.
She added that the Mossad discovered that at that time Hezbollah was purchasing pagers from a Taiwanese company called Gold Apollo. It created a fake company that used the name Gold Apollo on the bomb pagers, without the knowledge of the parent company.
CBS said Mossad placed explosives inside powerful enough to only harm the user.
“We tested everything three times, or twice, or multiple times to make sure there was minimal damage,” said the second agent, whom the program named Gabriel.
She said Mossad specifically chose a ringtone that sounded urgent enough for someone to be able to check the incoming message.
Gabriel said the agency tricked Hezbollah into buying pagers, making films and advertising brochures, and sharing them online.
He added: “When they buy from us, they have no proof that they are buying from Mossad.” “We make it like The Truman Show, everything we control behind the scenes.”
CBS said Hezbollah had purchased 5,000 bomb pagers by September 2024.
She added that it was launched from Israel when Mossad feared that Hezbollah had suspicions.
The explosions sent shockwaves across Lebanon, with explosions occurring everywhere pagers were carried, including supermarkets. Hospitals were crowded with victims, many of whom had been mutilated.
Gabriel said that there was a “strong rumour” that people had also fallen victim to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Days later, while Hezbollah was still reeling from the attack, Israel began intense waves of air strikes against Hezbollah targets, followed by a ground invasion of Lebanon.
The two sides agreed to a ceasefire on November 26.
Lebanon strongly condemned the attacks on pagers and radios, while the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk said they left him “terrified”.
He added that the method of attacks “violates international human rights law and international humanitarian law, as applicable.”
