Israel turns focus toward Lebanon and Hezbollah

Palestinian children walk to a temporary shelter in an educational centre under the supervision of UNICEF, in Khan Yunis. Pic/AFP

Israel's defense minister has declared the start of a "new phase" of the war as Israel turns its focus toward the northern front against Hezbollah militants based in Lebanon. Two waves of explosive attacks hit Syria and Lebanon: an apparent Israeli attack targeting pagers used by Hezbollah that killed at least 12 and wounded nearly 3,000 on Tuesday, and exploding walkie-talkies and other electronics Wednesday across Lebanon that killed at least 20 people and injured 450 others.

"We are at the start of a new phase in the war - it requires courage, determination and perseverance," Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told troops on Wednesday. The head of Hezbollah's Executive Council promised the group would respond to Tuesday's pager explosion attack with "special punishment". Meanwhile, Hezbollah militants fired a fresh barrage of rockets into northern Israel on Thursday.

Japanese firm says walkie-talkies with its logo were discontinued years ago

The remains of an exploded radio device. PIC/AFP

Japanese wireless communication equipment-maker Icom says it cannot confirm whether a walkie-talkie used in the explosive attacks against Hezbollah was related to the company, noting that the production and sales of that device and its battery were discontinued about a decade ago. The Osaka-based Icom was responding Thursday to a report that said one of the walkie-talkies used in the attacks a day earlier had a sticker with the company's logo. Icom also noted that the device in question did not have an anti-counterfeit hologram sticker, which all authentic Icom products should be carrying.

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