Iran accuses Israel of ‘mass murder’ after pager bomb attacks

Iran has accused Israel of ‘mass murder’ after thousands of pagers belonging to Hezbollah fighters exploded, leaving almost 3,000 wounded and 12 dead in Lebanon and Syria. The Lebanese militant group is aligned with Tehran, with each blaming their common enemy Israel for the pager blasts which amount to the biggest security breach in Hezbollah’s history.

Its leaders have vowed to exact revenge on Israel, which has not commented on the explosions but which experts and security sources have said is likely to have been behind it. Overnight, as Hezbollah’s leadership digested yesterday’s surprise attack and began to plot its next move, Israel’s Defence Forces launched a blistering aerial assault on a number of targets across southern Lebanon.

Amid fears that the region is now teetering on the edge of all-out war, with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu pondering an expansion of military activity on his country’s northern border, allies on both sides have urgently called for calm. As reports of the blasts emerged yesterday, the US insisted it had no involvement in nor prior knowledge of the attacks, and warned Iran not to exploit the situation.

‘The US was not aware of this incident in advance,’ State Department Spokesman Matt Miller told reporters during a press briefing. ‘We would urge Iran not to take advantage of any incident to try to add further instability and to further increase tensions in the region,’ he added. The United Nations special coordinator for Lebanon labelled the blasts an ‘extremely concerning escalation in what is an already unacceptably volatile context.’

Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert called for calm following the attacks, which resulted in the deaths of a number of civilians, including children. She reiterated to all ‘concerned actors that civilians are not a target and must be protected at all times,’ and stressed that ‘even one civilian casualty is one too many.’ As the full extent of the repercussions of the attack remain unclear, she urged those concerned ‘to refrain from any further action, or bellicose rhetoric, which could trigger a wider conflagration that nobody can afford.’

Britain has also called for de-escalation as tensions in the region threaten to erupt. ‘We continue to monitor the situation in Lebanon closely and the UK is working with diplomatic and humanitarian partners in the region,’ the foreign office said in a statement. ‘The civilian casualties following these explosions are deeply distressing. We urge calm heads and de-escalation at this critical time.’

Meanwhile Russia said it strongly condemned Tuesday’s deadly attack on ‘friendly Lebanon’ and called for ‘all parties involved to exercise restraint’. Moscow’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova declared today that ‘the unprecedented attack’ on the country and its citizens ‘constitutes a flagrant violation of its sovereignty and a serious challenge to international law through the use of unconventional weapons.’

Iranian Foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said in a statement that he ‘condemned the terrorist act of the Zionist regime’, referring to Israel. The Iranian Red Crescent said on Wednesday it had dispatched ‘rescue teams and eye surgeons’ to Lebanon to treat the wounded.

Since yesterday’s attack, the IDF revealed this morning that it had struck a number of Hezbollah targets across southern Lebanon, with video showing an aerial raid on one alleged terrorist hideout. ‘Closing a circle from the air, fighter jets attacked the building where the terrorists were operating,’ the IDF said in a statement. ‘In addition, warplanes attacked the organization’s military buildings in five different areas in southern Lebanon.’

The Israeli military added in a statement this morning that it would ‘continue to operate against the threat of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in order to defend the State of Israel.’

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