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Mossad agents reveal details of operation to blow up Hezbollah's communications equipment

2024-12-23 16:16:45, Kosova & Bota CNA

Mossad agents reveal details of operation to blow up Hezbollah's

Two former Israeli agents reveal for the first time details of the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad's covert operation planning against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group operating in Lebanon. In an interview with the American television network CBS, the two Israeli agents showed how the Mossad carried out the operation of detonating pagers and hand-held radios, which severely affected the command and members of Hezbollah. On 60 Minutes, intelligence agents appeared with masked faces and altered voices to hide their identities.

Former Israeli intelligence agents said Israel's Mossad spy agency began the operation to plant explosives in Hezbollah's communications equipment 10 years ago. The two former agents, who identified themselves under the pseudonyms Gabriel and Michael, recounted to CBS television the process that led to the strike on one of the largest militant organizations in the Middle East, declared a terrorist organization by the United States government.

Communications devices used by hundreds of members of the militant group Hezbollah exploded almost simultaneously in Lebanon and Syria in September, killing dozens and injuring hundreds of members of the group.

Hezbollah, according to the agents, was not aware that it was buying the hand-held radios from their enemy, Israel.

Agent 'Michael' said the Mossad created a "made-up world", while Agent 'Gabriel' uses the example of the 1998 psychological genre film 'The Truman Show', where the main character is a man who doesn't know that he lives in a fake world and that his family and friends are actually actors who are paid to make this illusion come true.

"When they bought (the equipment) from us, they had no idea that they were buying from the Mossad... We controlled everything behind the scenes. As far as they were concerned, everything seemed normal. We took care of all the details, including the entrepreneur, the marketing, the engineers, the pavilion" , says the former top Israeli intelligence agent, 'Gabriel'.

According to former agents, the second phase of the plan began in 2022 after Mossad received information that Hezbollah had ordered pagers from a Taiwanese company. These small communication devices are used for sending messages and signals. But to be filled with explosives, they had to be produced in larger sizes.

According to the agents, they were tested many times on the mannequin, to determine the right amount of explosives, so that the explosion would only injure the Hezbollah members and not other people who might be near them.

"The only one who would be injured was the terrorist. Even if his wife or daughter were close to him, he would be the only one who would be injured" , according to 'Gabriel'. "Every step was tried twice, three times, several times, to make sure the damage was minimal."

According to the agents, the Mossad tested different ringtones to find one that gave a sense of urgency and would prompt Hezbollah members to pull the pager out of their pocket.

Agent Gabriel says it took two weeks to convince Hezbollah to use the larger pagers, in part by using fabricated ads on the YouTube platform touting them as devices impervious to dust, water and that have longer lasting batteries.

During the show, Agent Gabriel described how shell companies, including one based in Hungary, were used to trick the Taiwanese firm, Gold Apollo, into entering into a cooperation contract with the Mossad without their knowledge.

By September 2024, Hezbollah militants had 5,000 communication devices in their pockets.

Israel launched the attack on September 17, activating all equipment in Lebanon. They also exploded when their owners did not press the button to read the coded message.

The next day, the Mossad activated the hand-held radios, some of which exploded while a funeral ceremony was being held for the 30 killed in the first attack.

According to Agent Gabriel, the purpose of the operation was more to send a message to Hezbollah than to kill its members.

Days after the attack, Israeli forces launched airstrikes hitting Hezbollah targets across Lebanon. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was among those killed when Israel bombed his hideout.

Agent 'Michael' said that after the explosion of the communication equipment, residents in Lebanon were afraid to turn on the air conditioners for fear that they too would explode.

"Hezbollah's war stopped after this operation. I hope it will have an impact on Hamas and the hostage situation because now they are seeing it and realizing that they have no one around. Now they are completely isolated," said former agent 'Michael'.

The war between Israel and Hezbollah, which was triggered by Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, was halted by a ceasefire in November. Israel's war in Gaza, where according to health officials 45,000 Palestinians have been killed, is still going on./ VOA