14 killed, 450 wounded in second day of explosions in Lebanon

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BEIRUT — Lebanon's health ministry said Wednesday that at least 14 people were killed and 450 others wounded by exploding electronic devices in multiple regions of the country.

The explosions came a day after an apparent Israeli attack targeting pagers used by Hezbollah killed at least 12 and wounded nearly 3,000.

Associated Press journalists reported multiple explosions at the site of a Beirut funeral for three Hezbollah members and a child killed by exploding pagers the day before.

A Hezbollah official said that walkie-talkies used by the group exploded in Beirut. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Gaza's Health Ministry says more than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed in the territory since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack. The ministry does not differentiate between fighters and civilians in its count but says a little over half of those killed were women and children. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

Asked about Tuesday's pager explosions, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called it especially serious not only because of the large number of victims "but because of the indications that exist that this was triggered — I would say, in advance of the normal way to trigger these things — because there was a risk of this being discovered."

"Obviously, the logic of making all these devices explode is to do it as a preemptive strike before a major military operation," the U.N. chief said. "So as important as the event in itself, is the indication that this event confirms that there is a serious risk of a dramatic escalation in Lebanon."

"Everything must be done to avoid that escalation," Guterres said.

Guterres made the comments prior to finding out about Wednesday's explosions involving walkie-talkies.

Israel's defense minister has declared the start of a "new phase" of the war as Israel turns its focus toward the northern front against Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

Speaking to Israeli troops on Wednesday, Yoav Gallant made no mention of the explosions of electronic devices in Lebanon in recent days. But he praised the work of Israel's army and security agencies, saying "the results are very impressive."

He said that after months of war against Hamas militants in Gaza, "the center of gravity is shifting to the north by diverting resources and forces."

"We are at the start of a new phase in the war — it requires courage, determination and perseverance," he said.

Gallant's comments came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was huddling with top security officials at Israeli military headquarters in Tel Aviv.

'De-escalation is today more crucial than ever'

Hashem Safieddine, head of Hezbollah's Executive Council said Wednesday that the militant group will respond to Tuesday's pager explosion attack with "special punishment."

The group is in a "new confrontation with the enemy," Safieddine said.

The U.N. human rights chief is calling for an independent investigation into mass explosions from detonating pagers in Lebanon and Syria.

Volker Türk said in a statement Wednesday that "the fear and terror unleashed is profound" and urged world leaders to step up "in defense of the rights of all people to live in peace and security."

Türk said the targeting of thousands of people — whether civilians or members of armed groups — without knowledge of who held the devices or where they were, violates international law.

"The protection of civilians must be the paramount priority," he said, alluding to the deadly violence in the Middle East in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel. "De-escalation is today more crucial than ever."

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has accused the U.S. and its allies of backing the exploding pagers attack on Hezbollah in Lebanon and Syria.

"Using devices, made for welfare of human beings, as a tool for assassination and annihilation" of those who don't hold the same views of the U.S., Israel and the West is "an indication of the collapse of humanity as well domination of savagery and barbarism," the website of the president quoted him as saying Wednesday.

"The incident once again showed that western nations and Americans fully support crime, killings and blind assassinations by the Zionist regime, in practice," Pezeshkian added.

Iran is the chief supporter of Hezbollah, the militant Lebanese group that Israel sees it as its most direct threat. Many of the group's fighters were killed and injured in Tuesday's explosions.

Iran has already sent a group of Iranian medics to Lebanon to help victims of the explosions.

Taiwanese company Gold Apollo said Wednesday that it authorized its brand on the pagers that exploded in Lebanon and Syria but that another company based in Budapest manufactured them.

The AR-924 pagers used by the militants were manufactured by BAC Consulting KFT, based in Hungary's capital, according to a statement released Wednesday by Gold Apollo.

"According to the cooperation agreement, we authorize BAC to use our brand trademark for product sales in designated regions, but the design and manufacturing of the products are solely the responsibility of BAC," the statement read.

Gold Apollo chair Hsu Ching-kuang told journalists Wednesday that his company has had a licensing agreement with BAC for the past three years, but did not provide evidence of the contract.

The AR-924 pager, advertised as being "rugged," contains a rechargeable lithium battery, according to specifications once advertised on Gold Apollo's website before it was apparently taken down Tuesday after the attack. It could receive text messages of up to 100 characters and claimed to have up to 85 days of battery life. That's something that would be crucial in Lebanon, where electricity outages have been common as the tiny nation on the Mediterranean Sea has faced years of economic collapse.

Pagers also run on a different wireless network than mobile phones, making them more resilient in emergencies — one of the reasons why many hospitals worldwide still rely on them.

Contributing: Abby Sewell, Kareem Chehayeb, Melanie Lidman, Josef Federman, Zeke Miller and Jon Gambrell

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