450 Wounded, 14 Dead After Lebanon Hit With Second Wave Of Device Explosions

The attacks, which humanitarian groups noted are likely war crimes, are an escalation by Israel.

By Sharon Zhang, TruthOut

People across Lebanon were hit with a second round of handheld device explosions on Wednesday, wounding over 450 people as hospitals are already overwhelmed with the scores of people injured across the country in a similar attack orchestrated by Israel the day before.

At least 14 people were killed by a wave of walkie talkie explosions, according to an initial count by Lebanon’s health ministry shortly after the attack. Homes and shops were set on fire by the blasts. Lebanon’s news agency also reported that solar energy systems had exploded.

Nowhere was safe from the explosions, indicating the indiscriminate nature of the attack. Explosions went off at a funeral for a child and three adults, including a paramedic, who were killed in the previous day’s attack.

Al Jazeera also reported on Wednesday that Lebanese forces found an explosive device in an ambulance at the American University of Beirut Medical Center, noting that communication devices like the ones exploded this week are used regularly by medical teams. It’s unclear if the explosive device is related to the walkie talkie explosions.

The attack came just after the ministry updated the death toll from Tuesday’s pager explosion attack to 12, including an 8-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy, as well as four medical staff. Tuesday’s attack injured at least 2,750 people, overwhelming hospitals.

Wednesday’s attack will add to that load. The Lebanese Red Cross said that it was dispatching at least 30 ambulance teams in southern and eastern Lebanon in response to the explosions.

According to The Associated Press, a Hezbollah official anonymously said that the group used the walkie-talkies that exploded on Wednesday.