The Iranian-backed proxy Hezbollah blamed Israel for the blasts that also wounded at least 2,700 and killed eight of its operatives in Lebanon.
(JNS)
At least a dozen Hezbollah operatives were wounded in the Damascus area on Tuesday afternoon when their pagers exploded due to an alleged Israeli hack that also injured more than 2,700 terrorists in Lebanon, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights announced.
According to the group, which is affiliated with the opposition and based in the United Kingdom, at least 14 Hezbollah members “whose nationalities were not disclosed” were wounded in the alleged attack.
In Damascus, four terrorists were said to have been hurt when a communications device exploded in a car on a road near the Kafr Sousa district. In Sayyidah Zaynab, about six miles south of the Syrian capital, seven people were wounded. Another three terrorists sustained wounds in a blast in the Qalamoun Mountains near the Lebanese border.
They were evacuated to several hospitals around Damascus, activists affiliated with the Syrian war monitor reported.
A source with links to Hezbollah confirmed to AFP that some terrorists were wounded in explosions in Syria, without disclosing how many.
Iran-backed Hezbollah blamed Israel for the pager blasts that wounded at least 2,700 and killed eight of its operatives in Lebanon, saying the Jewish state will get “its fair punishment” in response.
The statement warned that “this treacherous and criminal enemy will certainly receive its just punishment for this sinful aggression from where it expects it or does not expect it,” according to a translation by Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen, which is affiliated with the terror group.
Approximately 200 terrorists were in critical condition in 100 Lebanese hospitals, Beirut’s health minister, Firass Abiad, announced some three hours after the blasts were first reported at 3.30 p.m. local time.
Senior Hezbollah officials were said to have been wounded in the blasts. Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, was also hurt in one of the explosions, Tehran’s semi-
The Israel Defense Forces declined to comment on the incident, which came just hours after the Israeli Cabinet added the return of citizens displaced from their homes in the north to the country’s war goals, bringing a potential major clash with Hezbollah closer to reality.
The IDF’s Home Front Command has reportedly informed local authorities of a possible escalation on the border with Lebanon but stressed that there are currently no changes to instructions for citizens.
Image: Dummar, a northwestern suburb of Syria’s capital Damascus, June 29, 2019. Credit: T Foz/Unsplash.
