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Personal devices blasts in Lebanon

Israel may have planted explosives in pagers that detonated in Lebanon — Turkish minister

"Certain changes might have been made that caused the batteries to heat up a result of a short circuit and explode," Abdulkadir Uraloglu assumed

ANKARA, September 18. /TASS/. Turkish Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu has said explosives planted in pagers in Israel were one of the most probable reasons for the detonation of these devices in Lebanon.

"After the incident, we started discussing with experts how this might happen. One of the most likely versions is that Israel, well aware that Hezbollah members were using such devices and often buying new ones, could have planted explosives in them well in advance. Then certain arrangements might have been made to ensure these particular pagers should be purchased. A signal was sent to them simultaneously and they exploded," Uraloglu told the Anadolu news agency.

Uraloglu cited hacking and disruption of the pagers’ stable operation as another version.

"Certain changes might have been made that caused the batteries to heat up a result of a short circuit and explode. But this version is unlikely. Let's remember how many similar short circuits incidents have taken place both in repair shops and in the pockets of consumers. Such incidents did not cause fatalities or serious injuries. The first version looks more realistic to us," Uraloglu said.

Speaking about the potential risks of a similar incident in Turkey he dismissed such a possibility. He explained that pagers in Turkey were very rare.

Attack on Lebanon

On September 17, many pagers exploded almost simultaneously in different parts of Lebanon. According to the country's Health Ministry, there have been fatalities and a large number of injured. The Shiite movement Hezbollah blamed the explosions on Israel and promised a "just response." According to one version, the incident was a result of a cyberattack. The pagers were reportedly brought to Lebanon for Hezbollah supporters in the spring of this year with explosive devices already embedded in them.

CNN earlier also indicated that the explosions in Lebanon were a result of a "joint operation by Israeli intelligence and the Israeli military." The Israeli authorities did not comment on the incident.

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