Istanbul (Agencies): Turkish intelligence intercepted a shipment of 1,300 booby-trapped pagers that were en route to Lebanon, preventing a potentially deadly operation similar to the September pager attack that rocked the country.
According to Turkiye’s Sabah newspaper, the Turkish Intelligence Organisation (MIT) launched inspections after receiving information about the illicit cargo. The investigation led to the seizure at Istanbul Airport, just days after Mossad’s bombing of pagers in Lebanon. The shipment had been scheduled for September 27, before being thwarted.
Authorities discovered that the pagers had been funneled through a complex network of front companies, moving through Bulgaria, Hungary, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, before arriving in Turkiye for their final transport.
In December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reportedly discussed the seizure with former Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, confirming that the devices had been confiscated and destroyed.
The interception follows a previous operation by Mossad, which had smuggled 500 pager radios into Lebanon weeks before October 7, 2023. On September 17, Israeli forces detonated the pagers, killing 37 people and injuring 2,931 others. The following day, ICOM radios were also detonated.
Mossad Chief David Barnea later described the pager operation as a major turning point in Israel’s conflict with Lebanon.
The successful Turkish operation has raised alarm over growing smuggling networks in the region. Intelligence agencies remain on high alert for further attempts to transport suspicious electronic devices across borders.