UN Rights Chief calls device attacks 'possible war crimes'
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Acts of violence intended to terrorize civilians are considered war crimes, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said.
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UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk. (source: OHCHR)
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk stated on Friday that the attacks using pagers and other electronic devices in Lebanon breached international humanitarian laws.
"Simultaneous targeting of thousands of individuals, whether civilians or members of armed groups, without knowledge as to who was in possession of the targeted devices, their location and their surroundings at the time the attack violates international human rights law, and as applicable international humanitarian law," Turk told the UN Security Council.
The High Commissioner noted that international humanitarian law forbids the use of booby-trapped devices disguised as harmless portable objects, which are specifically designed and assembled to contain explosive material.
"It is a war crime to commit violence intended to spread terror among the civilians," he added.
Read more: Russia slams pager blasts in Lebanon as 'new type of terrorist act'
On September 17 and 18, explosions involving pagers and walkie-talkies occurred across various regions of Lebanon.
The Lebanese Health Ministry reported that the blasts resulted in 37 martyrs and over 3,000 injuries.
Hezbollah has vowed retaliation for the aggression, prompting international observers, including those from China, Spain, Turkey, and the EU, to call for immediate de-escalation and restraint.
ABC News reported on Friday that the production of pagers took over 15 years of planning.
The firms suspected to have played the key role in the attack are Hungarian-based BAC Consulting, which Taiwan-based producer Gold Apollo says had permission to use its brand - including manufacturing - through a licensing agreement.
Another company in Bulgaria is also suspected to have been part of the terrorist operation, yet it was unnamed by the country's authorities.
Sources said that the pagers were rigged with one to two ounces of explosives and equipped with a remote trigger to initiate the explosion.
"This is no less than a crime," he said, likening it to "shooting an Arrow or David's sling missile at the Independence Day fireworks show."
"This thing should have been saved for the right time," he maintained.
Read more: New warfare era: Israelis weaponize consumer goods in terror attacks
