Hezbollah leader says pager and walkie-talkie attacks amount to 'declaration of war'
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah gives a televised address
Reuters
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has said the exploding pager attacks is a "declaration of war."
Nasrallah says the group has been dealt a "very hard" blow, describing the attacks as “unprecedented” in Lebanon.
He said: "We have received a very hard hit. But this is a state of a war."
Nasrallah added the pager attacks were intended to “kill 4,000 people in one moment...This was the intention of the enemy, and this is the scale of criminality...What can we call this kind of criminal action. Is it a big operation? Is it genocide? Is it a massacre?"
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah gives a televised address
Reuters
Eyewitnesses are reporting Israeli jets are carrying out huge sonic booms over the Lebanese capital, Beirut, during the speech.
Lebanese residents, already on edge following this week's blasts across the country that the group blamed on Israel, were panicked fearing a major escalation.
The attacks on Hezbollah's communications equipment killed 37 people and wounded around 3,000, raising fears that a full-blown war was imminent.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied being behind the attacks but multiple security sources have said they were carried out by its spy agency Mossad.
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People watch Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah delivering a televised address
Reuters
French President Emmanuel Macron held phone calls with top political and military leaders from Lebanon urging restraint.
Macron asked Lebanese leaders to pass on messages to local groups including Hezbollah to avoid further escalation, the Elysee said, amid fears of a wider war.
Nasrallah concluded his speech pledging support for Hamas fighting in Gaza.
He added: "I say it clearly: no matter what the consequences are, no matter what the sacrifices are, no matter what scenarios would unfold, the resistance in Lebanon will not stop supporting the resistance in Gaza and the West Bank and all the aggrieved in the occupied territories."
Meanwhile, a Turkish defence ministry official said officials are reviewing its measures to secure the communication devices used by its armed forces after the deadly blasts in Lebanon.
The Turkish official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Turkey's military exclusively used domestically-produced equipment but Ankara had additional control mechanisms in place if a third party is involved in procurement or production of devices.
The official said: "Whether in the operations we carry out, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and as with the Lebanon example, measures are reviewed and new measures are being developed as part of the lessons learned following each development."
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