At least nine people, including a child, were killed in a mass explosion of wireless communication devices known as pagers in different areas in Lebanon, Lebanese Health Minister Firas al-Abyad confirmed.
About 2,800 people were injured, including 200 who were in critical condition, he told a news conference in Beirut.
Lebanese media suggest that the devices exploded after an Israeli breach of the communications system.
The Lebanese group Hezbollah confirmed that a child and two of their members were killed in a massive explosion, and that many others were injured.
“Around 3:30 p.m. local time, several pager devices used by various members of Hezbollah units and institutions exploded,” the group said in a statement.
Hezbollah did not provide further details about the explosions or who might be behind the attack.
Lebanon’s Ministry of Health earlier called on all citizens who own pager communication devices to discard them immediately.
The massive explosion came amid an exchange of cross-border attacks between Hezbollah and Israel against the backdrop of a brutal Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 41,200 people, mostly women and children, since October 7 last year.
The apparent attack comes as tensions between Israel and Hezbollah on the Lebanese border have reached a peak after months of retaliatory attacks that have displaced tens of thousands of people in both countries.
Israeli officials said this week that the military is ready to take action against Hezbollah, indicating that diplomatic efforts to prevent all-out war have been exhausted.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) declined to comment Tuesday on whether it was responsible for the pager blasts.
