BEIRUT (AP) — New explosions were reported on Wednesday in Beirut and other parts of Lebanon in an apparent second wave of detonations of electronic devices, according to Hezbollah officials and state media. The report indicates that walkie-talkies and even solar power equipment exploded.
At least nine people died and 300 were injured, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health.
These events occur one day after hundreds of pagers exploded while in the possession of Hezbollah members, leaving 12 people dead, including two minors, and around 2,800 injured.
How did the new device explosions happen?
There were several explosions in Beirut at the funeral of three Hezbollah members and a minor who died in the landmine explosions the day before, according to AP journalists on the scene.
An AP photographer in the coastal city of Sidon saw a car and a mobile phone shop damaged after devices exploded inside them.
A Hezbollah official told the AP that portable radios used by the group exploded. In turn, the Lebanese official news agency reported that household solar power systems exploded in several parts of Beirut and southern Lebanon, injuring at least one girl.
Hashem Safieddine, director of Hezbollah's Executive Council, said on Wednesday that the group will respond with "a special punishment". He asserted that the group is "in a new confrontation with the enemy".
New details are emerging about the attack on the bus passengers.
However, details of Tuesday's operation began to emerge when hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded. A company based in Hungary was responsible for manufacturing the pagers, in an apparent Israeli operation. Experts believe that the explosive material was placed in the pagers before they were delivered and used, in a sophisticated infiltration of the supply chain.
The attack in Lebanon began on Tuesday afternoon, when the beepers in the hands or pockets of their owners began to heat up and then exploded, leaving scenes splattered with blood and witnesses in panic.
A US official said that Israel informed the United States of the operation once it was concluded.
The AR-924 pagers used by the militiamen were manufactured by BAC Consulting KFT, based in the capital of Hungary, according to a statement released on Wednesday by Gold Apollo, a Taiwanese company that authorized the use of its brand on the devices.
The Lebanese Minister of Health, Firas Abiad, told the press during a visit to hospitals on Wednesday morning that many of the injured had "severe eye injuries" and others had suffered limb amputations.
On Wednesday morning, an Iraqi military plane landed in Beirut with 15 tons of medicine and medical equipment, Abiad said.