On September 17, 2024, a series of synchronized explosions rocked Lebanon, killing at least nine people and injuring nearly 3,000. The blasts originated from pagers used by Hezbollah members, including fighters and medics. As the pagers rang, unsuspecting users touched or picked them up to check the screens, triggering the explosions. Eyewitnesses reported that the detonations continued for approximately an hour.
The explosions were relatively localized, primarily affecting the person holding the pager or those in close proximity. Hospital footage and social media posts revealed victims suffering from facial injuries, missing fingers, and severe lacerations to the thigh area where pagers had been kept in pockets. Despite the personal injuries, the blasts did not cause significant structural damage to buildings or ignite fires.
Conflicting accounts emerged regarding the cause of the explosions. While the Lebanese government suspected a cyber-attack on the devices, alternative theories suggested that Israel may have infiltrated the pager supply chain, rigging them with explosive materials before their distribution to Hezbollah.
What is a Pager?
A pager is a small electronic device used to receive text messages or notifications without the need for an internet connection. Widely popular in the 1990s and early 2000s, pagers served as a primary means of communication before mobile phones became ubiquitous.
These devices operate by receiving digital radio signals from telecommunications networks. Upon receipt, the pager decodes these signals, which contain information such as texts or alerts, and displays them on its screen. While basic models can only display short notifications, more advanced pagers allow users to view longer text messages and even reply or call specific numbers.
Interestingly, pagers have found a niche use in modern times. Members of the Lebanese Hezbollah, for instance, utilize pagers for communication, believing that this method helps them evade geographical tracking by Israel. This preference stems from the pager's unique characteristics: unlike smartphones, pagers do not require internet or wireless network connections and do not use geolocation data, making them comparatively more secure for covert communications.
Important Uses
Although the use of pagers has declined significantly with the advent of smartphones, they continue to play a crucial role in several specialized fields. These include hospitals, health facilities, shopping malls, and even desert tours, where quick and reliable notifications are essential. The following list outlines some of the key areas where pagers remain indispensable:
1. Medical and healthcare field: Pagers are widely used in hospitals due to their reliability and speed in sending notifications to medical staff. In fact, they are often preferred over mobile phones because they do not rely on potentially unstable internet or mobile phone signals, which can be problematic in certain areas of a hospital. Moreover, these devices prove invaluable in emergency situations, where instant notifications to doctors, nurses, and paramedics can make the difference between life and death.
2. Emergency and rescue services: Building on their reliability, pagers are also utilized by some fire and police teams. These services rely on pagers to alert teams about accidents and emergency tasks, particularly in environments where mobile phone signals may be weak or unavailable.
3. Hazardous industries and industrial sites: In industrial environments where mobile phones or wireless networks might pose safety or security risks due to interference, pagers offer a safe and effective alternative for communication.
4. Highly sensitive environments: Pagers find application in environments such as laboratories or areas sensitive to electromagnetic radiation. Unlike mobile phones, pagers don't emit strong signals, making them suitable for use in these delicate settings.
5. Industrial control and technology: Expanding on their use in industrial environments, pagers are employed to alert operators and technicians about malfunctions or warnings in industrial systems or technological infrastructure. Their effectiveness in transmitting important messages makes them a valuable tool in these sectors.
6. Security and guarding services: Lastly, some security companies leverage the quick alert capabilities of pagers for their guarding and monitoring personnel, ensuring rapid response to security incidents.
Popular Manufacturers of Pagers
During the heyday of pagers in the 1980s and 1990s, several major technology companies dominated the manufacturing landscape. These prominent manufacturers include:
Motorola: As one of the largest manufacturers, Motorola significantly impacted the global pager market by launching several popular models that set industry standards.
NEC: This Japanese company established itself as a major competitor, offering advanced pager products that pushed the boundaries of wireless communication technology during that era.
Philips: Although not as dominant as some others, Philips contributed to the diversity of available options for consumers.
Unication: Known for its longevity in the industry, Unication specialized in providing wireless communication solutions and continued to manufacture pagers.
Jensen: This company made its mark by introducing several popular pager models that resonated with users.
Gold Apollo: Founded in 1980, this Taiwanese company specialized in producing pagers and other communication equipment. Gold Apollo focused on providing wireless communication solutions that were widely used before the proliferation of mobile phones.
Two Scenarios for the Explosion
There were multiple accounts regarding the cause of the explosion of the pagers in Lebanon. The following are two possible scenarios:
Scenario 1: Planting a small amount of explosives or triggering explosive chips in devices that were designated for Hezbollah months ago:
These devices were manufactured by the Taiwanese company Gold Apollo, although an official denied that it was the direct manufacturer. Instead, it was suggested that one of the European companies with the right to use the trademark "Apollo" was responsible. Media reports indicated that the Hungarian company BAC may have been involved. Given the likelihood of this scenario and the accusations against Israel, it is worth noting that Israel has previously carried out assassinations using booby-trapped phones. In 1996, they used a booby-trapped phone to assassinate Hamas leader Yahya Ayyash. Israeli intelligence successfully delivered the phone to Ayyash, and when he used it, they recognized his voice and remotely detonated the phone, resulting in his death.
Considering the severity and nature of the injuries suffered by Hezbollah members, including loss of limbs and deep wounds, and Israel's history of using booby-trapped phones, this scenario may be highly likely. If true, it would be the largest direct targeting operation carried out remotely to date.
Scenario 2: Stimulating Lithium Batteries in Pager Devices
There are multiple possibilities for how these batteries could be stimulated to become time bombs:
1. Hacking the pager server: One possibility is that the pager server, to which most of these devices are connected, has been hacked through a loophole. This would allow access to all devices connected to the server, enabling the installation of a malicious worm. The worm would overload the devices, causing the lithium battery to overheat and explode.
2. High-intensity frequencies from drones: Another possibility is that these devices received high-intensity frequencies from drones in close proximity. These frequencies would reveal the device's code, leading to a significant increase in the battery's temperature and eventual explosion.
3. Back doors in pagers: Pagers may have back doors that can be exploited to cause the battery to explode.
4. Supply chain penetration: It is also possible that Israel has succeeded in penetrating the supply chain for manufacturing the pagers. They could have replaced the original batteries with others containing explosives.
It is worth noting that previous experiences have shown that fully charged lithium batteries explode with force, causing severe injuries or damage. On the other hand, batteries that are not fully charged tend to burn and emit gases and smoke, rather than explode.
Given the nature of the injuries in Lebanon, it is likely that the scenario involves booby-trapping pagers with chips that stimulate the explosion or with quantities of explosives. In this scenario, the lithium batteries act as catalysts. It is also possible that both scenarios occurred simultaneously, with the pagers being hacked and booby-trapped together. According to witnesses, these devices gave signals before the explosion, possibly to deceive Hezbollah elements and hold them in their hands, which would maximize the number of effective injuries.
Alternatively, the initial resonance could have been the detonation code sent to the pagers to activate the battery in preparation for detonating the explosive charge. This raises the possibility that the frequencies these devices operate on were hacked before the detonation, or even that the devices themselves were hacked in advance while the explosive charge was placed in them.
Despite the likelihood of the aforementioned scenario, it is also possible that Israel developed a technology similar to the Stuxnet worm. This technology was developed in cooperation with the US National Security Agency and caused the destruction of centrifuges used in uranium enrichment. The worm worked by closing the relief valves of the centrifuges, causing them to explode. This raises the question: Could Israel have developed a similar technology and used it in the pager bombings?
Catastrophic Risks
These unprecedented explosions open up great horizons for thinking about catastrophic scenarios, in which everything that depends on technology in our lives may become a weapon. Smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, laptops, and children's toys such as scooters all rely on lithium batteries, which may make them timed weapons.
Electric cars are also considered pre-bombed cars, which can be used in assassinations or to carry out terrorist attacks in new ways. This is in addition to the possibility of hacking any device that contains digital code or software, such as electricity generators, desalination plants, dams, transportation systems, and other infrastructure facilities. Such attacks could cause huge material and human losses, potentially transferring the methods of war between humans to a new stage of destruction that does not distinguish between civilians and the military, or between the old and the young.
