Israel Planned Hezbollah Pager Blasts As "Surprise Blow" In War, US Informed “Minutes” Before Attack

Israel had planned to use the pager attack to cripple Hezbollah as a "surprise opening blow" in a war, Axios reported. However, Israel activated a plan to explode Hezbollah pagers amid fears the plot was about to be uncovered by the Lebanese group, three US officials told Axios. “It was a use it or lose it moment,” a US official was quoted as saying by Axios. A member of Iran’s IRGC* told The New York Times that the pagers distributed by Hezbollah beeped for a number of seconds before they exploded. Meanwhile, on September 17, just minutes before the pagers started exploding across Lebanon, the Israeli defence minister called up his US counterpart to reveal the plan.