Israel has, for the first time, confirmed its involvement in a September operation to detonate hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah in Lebanon.
On Sunday, Israeli media reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed his cabinet, saying, “The beeper operation and the elimination of (Hezbollah’s leader Hassan) Nasrallah were launched despite the opposition of senior officials in the security establishment and the political echelon in charge of them.”
An Israeli official has confirmed to CNN that Netanyahu’s remarks about Israel’s involvement in detonating pagers used by Hezbollah in Lebanon were accurate. This marks the first time that Israel has publicly acknowledged its role in the operation.
The government’s decision to share Netanyahu’s comments with the Israeli media, effectively confirming Israel’s responsibility, appears to be part of ongoing domestic political maneuvering that has dominated recent weeks.
It is important to note that the Israeli government is currently mired in numerous criminal probes, including over allegedly leaking falsified intelligence reports to the international media. However, Netanyahu’s office denies any involvement in wrongdoing.
On September 17, a series of explosions targeted Hezbollah members, beginning with their pagers and continuing to their walkie-talkies the following day. The blasts left at least 37 people dead, including some children, and injured nearly 3,000 people, many of whom were civilian bystanders, according to Lebanese health authorities.
Netanyahu’s acknowledgment of the pager attacks coincided with his announcement that he had recently spoken three times with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.
