USA
Pentagon officials surprised and ‘impressed’ by Hezbollah pager explosions
Senior US official reveals behind-the-scenes details of the Pentagon’s reaction to Hezbollah’s pagers exploding
March 14, 2025 14:15
Senior US official reveals behind-the-scenes details of the Pentagon’s reaction to Hezbollah’s pagers exploding
March 14, 2025 14:15For the first time, a senior United States official has discussed behind-the-scenes events at the Pentagon on the day Hezbollah’s pagers exploded, revealing a surprising and impressive operation that left Pentagon officials in awe.
On September 17, 2024, what seemed like another day at the Pentagon quickly changed when a sudden request came from Israel’s then-defence minister Yoav Gallant to speak with US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin.
It was the day that thousands of pagers belonging to members of the Lebanese terrorist group exploded. The following day, hundreds of walkie-talkie devices belonging to Hezbollah operatives also exploded.
Official estimates claimed that at least 59 people were killed and more than 4,000 were injured.
Daniel (Dan) Shapiro, then-deputy assistant secretary of defence for the Middle East, told the Jerusalem Post, “It was morning in Washington, and we received a request for an urgent phone call, so we worked quickly to make the arrangements.” This was the first time Shapiro, or any senior US official, has disclosed details of those events,
“When the call concluded, we were still pretty confused about what he was describing because he didn’t go into much detail. But within less than 30 minutes, we started to see reports on CNN and other television networks about explosions happening in Lebanon,” Shapiro explained.
Reuters later reported that 1,500 Hezbollah operatives were injured so severely that they couldn’t return to service.
“We weren’t really given an explanation as to why that was the exact moment Israel chose to use this capability,” Shapirio added.
“What we came to understand was that there was concern the capability was about to be exposed. Hezbollah had grown suspicious of the pagers, and it became a ‘use-it-or-lose-it’ situation, which meant that it had a significant impact, but less than it might have if it had been used in the way originally intended,” he recalled.
Shapiro described the operation as surprising and creative. “It was unusual. And in some ways, you could say it was impressive. Maybe in many ways, you could say it was impressive.
“I think that was certainly part of the reaction from senior people in the US government. They were impressed by the creativity, the ingenuity, the secrecy and the careful targeting of Hezbollah members, ensuring that civilians weren’t affected.”
The question of whether Israel should have opened a front with Hezbollah shortly after the October 7 massacre was a matter of internal debate between Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Gallant argued that it was a missed opportunity, and that Israel could have detonated the walkie-talkies and pagers, causing substantial damage to Hezbollah, but Netanyahu and Mossad head Dadi (David) Barnea stated that the capability was not ready at that time.
“Minister Gallant informed Secretary Austin that Israel had a special capability, which he was about to exercise in Lebanon. He was vague about what it did or how it would work, but he wanted Austin to have advance knowledge of it,” Shapiro added.
Even up until the last minute, he said, Gallant felt compelled to withhold all the details, maintaining the secrecy required for such a sensitive operation.
The answer to what Israel’s “special capability” was, as Gallant described it, came from CNN.