A day after thousands of pagers exploded across Lebanon, new explosions of portable devices, including walkie-talkies, cell phones, laptops and even solar cells, have killed at least 20 people and injured 450.
Reports of several explosions on Wednesday spread quickly on messaging apps, with people sharing images of exploding walkie-talkies and burning residential buildings.
On Tuesday, some 4,000 pagers belonging to Hezbollah members exploded in the space of an hour, killing 12 and injuring nearly 3,000.
Here’s what we know:
So was this attack on a smaller scale?
Well, yes and no.
Although fewer devices exploded, they were larger and caused more injuries.
Firass Abiad, Lebanon’s health minister, told Al Jazeera that “those seriously injured were seriously affected.”
Where in Lebanon did the new explosions take place?
Reports continue to trickle in, but several explosions were reported in Beirut’s southern suburbs as well as in the southern city of Tyre on Wednesday afternoon.
Images posted on social media showed burning vehicles and smoke rising from a residential area while there were reports of walkie-talkies and even solar cells exploding.
Al Jazeera correspondent Ali Hashem witnessed a car explosion at a funeral in southern Lebanon.
He noted that the explosion appeared to come from inside the car rather than outside, as would be the case in a drone strike.
He described chaos on the streets, with ambulances rushing to collect the injured and reports of fresh explosions causing panic.
“We are probably seeing a new wave, … really worrying given that yesterday’s incident has already overwhelmed the entire health sector,” Hashem added.
What exploded?
There are reports of several different devices exploding.
Among these devices are mainly walkie-talkies, but there has also been talk of cell phones, laptops and even some solar energy systems.
Several cars also reportedly exploded, but it is unclear whether these explosions were caused by the car itself or something inside.
What are “walkie-talkie radios”?
A regular walkie-talkie is a handheld two-way radio device that allows users to exchange messages with the walkie-talkie base or other people with mobile receivers.
These are short range devices and must stay close to their base to transmit.
The devices called walkie-talkies are apparently IC-V82s, manufactured by the Japanese company ICOM, which are said to have a much greater range than regular walkie-talkies.
The IC-V82 has not been produced for 10 years, ICOM said after the incidents.
How to blow up walkie talkies?
Again, the details are not yet clear.
Some observers wonder whether Wednesday’s explosions are similar to those involving pagers.
With these elements, the supply chain could have been infiltrated and the devices loaded with 1 to 3 grams (0.04 to 0.11 oz) of a powerful explosive.
It appears that at least some Hezbollah members believe the explosions were related to batteries.
Several of them quickly removed the batteries from their radios and threw them away after one exploded at a funeral in a southern suburb of Beirut, according to the Reuters news agency.
Pagers use radio transmission and reception, just like a radio does, of course.
Most of the devices hit appeared to be communications systems, but other devices also exploded, such as solar panels. At least one of the explosions injured a girl.
Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have accused Israel of responsibility for the explosions. Israel has not commented.
Why would Israel do this to Lebanon?
Israel’s long-term strategy is unclear, but the attacks represent a notable escalation against Hezbollah and Lebanon.
Analysts have long accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of escalating tensions on one front after another in an attempt to avoid facing repercussions for his security failures and a corruption case for which he is on trial.
Recently, he added a “new war objective” – to clear the northern area near the Lebanese border so that Israelis who had to evacuate the area could return.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Wednesday night that the military would divert forces and resources from its nearly year-long war in northern Gaza.
To what extent is this act a blow to Hezbollah?
The attacks represent a serious security breach for Hezbollah as well as a powerful tool of psychological warfare, with some analysts questioning whether they have damaged the group’s image domestically.
Hezbollah’s communications apparatus appears to remain operational, according to political and security analyst Elijah Magnier, who said after the first attack that thousands of old pagers were unaffected and that the group had set up alternative secure communications.
As panic set in, Lebanese people began throwing away their devices or taking them to stores to have them checked.
On Wednesday, before the latest explosions, Hezbollah said it had attacked Israeli artillery positions with rockets in the first strike against Israel since the initial attacks, according to Reuters.
What’s next?
“This Israeli attack is considered a terrorist attack in Lebanon because it fuels terrorism,” Al Jazeera correspondent Imran Khan said from Beirut. “People are afraid.”
Magnier said Israel had succeeded in “creating confusion within Hezbollah and in society.”
He noted that the cascading reports and the climate of chaos were a sign that Israel’s strategy of waiting more than 24 hours before the second detonations had been a success.
“This is exactly Israel’s goal – to create such confusion and perhaps prepare for a third phase,” he said.
“We have to wait and see what they are up to next, because this is not the end.”
