In one of the most unbelievable developments of 2024, Israel somehow hacked into the pagers and cell phones of Hezbollah fighters and caused them to explode. News of hundreds of injuries, including dismemberments broke on Tuesday morning. Shortly after, videos of devices blowing up began to circulate. 

When I first saw the posts claiming this, I thought they had to be fake. Perhaps even an attempt by Hezbollah to garner sympathy. It's all real, though.

(WARNING: Viewer Discretion is Advised)

BREAKING via Reuters

Hundreds of members of Hezbollah were seriously wounded on Tuesday when the pagers they use to communicate exploded.

Here is one video of one of the pager explosions. pic.twitter.com/UDepHvkkEe

— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) September 17, 2024

In the above clip, you can see a man in a white shirt and black cap shopping for vegetables when an explosion occurs in what appears to be a satchel he was carrying. The effects leave him lying on the ground, screaming in pain while others scatter. The extent of his injuries is unknown, but they don't seem minor.  

Whether there have been any deaths as a result of the cyber attack is also unknown. I would assume the reported dismemberments occurred from people having their phones in their hands when they exploded. The physical harm caused is likely a secondary concern to Israel, though. This is much more about the psychological and logistical effects on Hezbollah's communication structure.  

Every single time a Hezbollah fighter holds a pager or a phone now, they will have to fear it's going to explode and blow their arm off. This might even force a reversion to more rudimentary means of communication (as if a pager isn't antiquated enough). The threat of a device blowing up is now out there, and the psychological impact of that can't be erased. 

To be frank, I wasn't even aware this was possible. I used to do IT work, so I get that batteries in phones and computers can overheat and catch fire (specifically if they are punctured), but to be able to make it happen remotely, on command via hacking is some sci-fi movie stuff. It should make every terrorist on earth question just what else Israel is capable of, and if I'm a leader in Iran, I'm terrified of the possibilities.