The making of Israel's ‘modern day Trojan horse’ plot

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  by Nasim Ahmed

   Nasimbythedocks

 New details have emerged about this week’s devastating explosions in Lebanon that killed dozens of people and injured thousands, with the New York Times reporting that the carnage was the result of an elaborate Israeli intelligence operation involving booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies.

According to the New York Times, citing multiple defence and intelligence officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, Israel engineered a sophisticated ruse against Hezbollah operatives, exploiting the group’s recent decision to move towards low-tech communication methods.

The operation reportedly stemmed from Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s public denouncement of mobile phones as security risks. Nasrallah had urged his followers to abandon smartphones, believing them vulnerable to Israeli hacking and location tracking. “Bury it,” Nasrallah had implored in a televised address. “Put it in an iron box and lock it.”

In response, Israeli intelligence allegedly established a front company called BAC Consulting, purportedly a Hungary-based firm contracted by a Taiwanese company named Gold Apollo. The shell company, along with at least two others, was reportedly staffed by Israeli intelligence officers posing as legitimate businesspeople. The Taiwanese company has since denied it manufactured the pagers. The government of Hungary has also said that the pagers did not pass through the country.

Read: Is Germany’s arms export controversy a sign of the Zionist project’s diminishing support?

According to the New York Times: “The Israeli government did not tamper with the Hezbollah devices that exploded, defence and intelligence officials say. It manufactured them as part of an elaborate ruse.” The pagers made by BAC Consulting for Hezbollah were fitted with batteries containing the explosive compound PETN. The devices were shipped to Lebanon from summer 2022 onwards, with production increasing rapidly following Nasrallah’s public statements against the use of mobile phones.

The operation culminated on Tuesday when the pagers were activated by sending a message in Arabic that appeared to come from Hezbollah’s senior leadership. Seconds later, the devices detonated, causing widespread chaos and carnage across Lebanon.

The explosions occurred in public spaces, markets, shops, and homes, killing at least a dozen people and injuring more than 2,700 on the first day alone. The following day saw 20 more fatalities and hundreds of additional injuries when similarly rigged walkie-talkies also exploded. Among the dead were four children, highlighting the indiscriminate nature of the attack.

Critics have labelled the Israeli operation a terrorist attack due to its targeting of civilian areas and the use of disguised explosive devices.

The incident has raised serious questions about the ethics of such covert operations and their impact on innocent bystanders. International law explicitly prohibits the use of booby traps and the indiscriminate targeting of public spaces.

While Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement, the sophistication and scale of the operation have left many convinced that the occupation state carried out the attack.

The full ramifications of this “modern-day Trojan horse” are yet to be fully understood. What is clear, however, is that the lines between military strategy and civilian safety have been dangerously blurred by Israel, placing anyone carrying a mobile device at risk.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20240919-the-making-of-israels-modern-day-trojan-horse-plot/