Medics collect blood donations in Beirut's southern suburb on 17 September 2024, after hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded across Lebanon. (AFP)
- The UN rights chief believes the exploding pagers in Lebanon may represent a breach of international law.
- Meanwhile, the UN's secretary-general has called for civilian objects not to be weaponised.
- Those comments were made before two-way radios used by Hezbollah exploded on Wednesday.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk on Wednesday called for an independent investigation into the events surrounding exploding pagers that killed at least 12 people in Syria and Lebanon – before Hezbollah walkie talkies reportedly started to explode.
The simultaneous targeting of thousands of individuals, without knowing who held the devices or their location violated international human rights law and possibly international humanitarian law, Turk said in a statement.
"There must be an independent, thorough and transparent investigation as to the circumstances of these mass explosions, and those who ordered and carried out such an attack must be held to account," he said.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday that civilian objects should not be weaponised.
"I think it's very important that there is an effective control of civilian objects, not to weaponise civilian objects -- that should be a rule that... governments should, be able to implement," Guterres said at a briefing at UN headquarters.
Lebanon and Iran blame Israel for a suspected supply-chain attack, in which pagers were intercepted before delivery to Hezbollah and small explosive loads added, to be activated by remote signal.
Hezbollah recently received a large batch of pagers, which it prefers to mobile phones because they are theoretically impossible to trace.
Initial reports from Lebanon suggested that two-way radios that exploded on Wednesday were also recent acquisitions, and may have been similarly modified before delivery.
Israel has made no comment on the attack. It has told forums such as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that it has high regard for international law and that it makes all possible efforts to protect civilians.
Lebanon's government said the pager attacked killed two children and four medics at a private hospital.
- Additional reporting by AFP
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