The Israeli secret service didn’t simply tamper with Hezbollah’s deadly pagers—they reportedly created them from scratch.
According to claims made in the media today, Israel established a complex network of shell companies across Europe in order to mount their audacious attack on the Iran-backed terror group in Lebanon.
Initially, it was believed that Mossad had intercepted and planted tiny bombs in a shipment of pagers destined for the Hezbollah, resulting in thousands of injuries and dozens of deaths.
However, it is now suggested that Israel set up front companies across Europe to manufacture the pagers themselves, embedding small amounts of PETN explosive inside, ready to be detonated by a coded message.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied any involvement in the explosions, but 12 current and former defence and intelligence officials told the New York Times that the Israelis were behind it, describing the operation as “complex and long”.
Israeli spies are reported to have begun devising their intricate plan well before February, when Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah publicly accused Israel of using cell phone networks to track his operatives.
In a televised address, Nasrallah told his followers, “You ask me where the agent is. I tell you that the phone in your hands, in your wife’s hands, and in your children’s hands is the agent.”
He then urged them to “bury it, put it in an iron box, and lock it.”
For years, Nasrallah had been advocating that Hezbollah switch to pagers, which, despite their limited capabilities, could receive data without revealing the user’s location or other compromising information.
According to the New York Times, one of Mossad’s shell companies, BAC Consulting in Budapest, Hungary, was established to produce these devices on behalf of the Taiwanese company Gold Apollo.
Gold Apollo’s chair, Hsu Ching-kuang, told journalists on Wednesday that the firm has had a licensing agreement with BAC for three years, allowing BAC to use their brand for sales while handling design and manufacturing independently.
At least two other shell companies, including one in Sofia, were reportedly created to mask the identities of the Israeli intelligence officers involved.
The listed chief executive of BAC has denied any knowledge of the plot, telling a US TV news station, "I don't make the pagers. I am just the intermediate. I think you got it wrong."
According to three intelligence officers who spoke to the NYT, BAC produced ordinary pagers for regular clients, but for the Lebanese consignment, Mossad were able to embed PETN explosives inside them.
Shipments of the pagers to Lebanon began in summer 2022 and increased after Nasrallah’s speech banning cell phones. Thousands of pagers were distributed among Hezbollah officers, who saw them as a defensive measure. However, Israeli intelligence referred to them as “buttons” to be pushed when needed.
This week, Israel triggered the pagers to beep by sending a message in Arabic, causing explosions that injured 2,800 people and killed a dozen in Lebanon and Syria. Walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah also detonated, injuring 450 and killing nine.
