Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani. Photo: antikor.
On Wednesday, Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani spoke about his experience during the explosions that occurred in Lebanon due to mined pagers. The incident resulted in deaths and thousands of injuries, including Amani himself. He shared the details during a television interview, where he noted that these devices were used exclusively for civilian purposes, TimeUkraineIsrael reports citing Sky News Arabia.
The circumstances of the incident and the nature of the injuries
Amani described in detail that he was injured in the explosion on the right side of his face, eyes and arm. He noted: “My right eye was damaged, but my vision is intact. My left eye requires less treatment and is stabilising. My right arm also has injuries”.
The ambassador said that the explosion occurred in his office when he received a siren message on his pager: “You have an important message, press this button”. When he activated the device, there was an explosion in his left hand. Despite the force of the explosion, he managed to get to the hospital on his own, where he received first aid. Surgery on his eyes and face was carried out immediately, and later the ambassador was evacuated to Tehran for further treatment.
The role of booby-trapped pagers in Lebanon
Amani said that these pagers were used for general alerts in shops, schools and even some Iranian educational institutions in Lebanon. He stressed that “Lebanon does not have a general warning system like the red alert system in Israel”, which led to the civilian use of the pagers. It is noted that these devices were specially configured for civilian use, and any use of military explosives in civilian devices is an international crime, for which, according to the ambassador, Israel is responsible.
Charges of supplying mined devices
The ambassador claims that the explosives were added to the pagers during the delivery process: “There are suggestions that several European countries were involved in the delivery of these devices with explosives, or that the cargo was replaced on the ship by a Zionist organisation.” According to him, the original devices were manufactured in Taiwan, but European countries could have substituted them with booby-trapped ones.
Civilian use and implications
Amani stressed that none of the devices were intended for military use by Hezbollah members: “These pagers were solely for informational purposes for civilians. None of the Hezbollah members used them for military purposes.” According to him, the victims include women and children, indicating widespread civilian use of the pagers. Amani suspects that the devices may have been programmed to detonate automatically.
The Iranian diplomat stressed that the attack was directed not only against him, but also against the entire resistance network in Lebanon. He expressed confidence that, despite all the intentions of the Zionist forces to strike, Lebanon’s resistance remained strong and unwavering.
