The Israeli bombings of Hezbollah pagers and walkie-talkies is a game changer and not in the way many think they will be. This attack, which was planned well, will not yield the desired results, namely Hezbollah backing off from firing into northern Israeli territories. The Lebanese party and militia will not be deterred by this, according to their leader. Despite what looks like preparations for an Israeli invasion, coupled with an increase in bombing and assassination of Hezbollah leaders we see no sign that the military wing of the organisation is even thinking about surrendering.
Now, let us be clear, this was an act of terror. Not only was it an act aimed at yielding a political result, it was also wholly indiscriminate. Children were killed and injured, teenage and adult bystanders were also killed and injured. As bad as the destruction of tower blocks to get at one target is, there is the argument that some military brass will make that those can theoretically be justified. There is no fig leaf of plausibility which can be claimed with something like this. It is clearly intended to cause as much harm to as many in the vicinity and is a clear act of terror.
But how is this a game changer, how is this act of terror different from the other terror acts committed by Israel? This differs in multiple ways which stretch beyond simply the boundaries of the Near East. As has been noted by others, this will impact the aviation sector in ways that it hasn’t been since 9/11.
We can expect stricter regulations on phones in planes, a possible ban on pagers in planes and possibly similar measures for walkie-talkies in and around airports. This has already started with some airlines banning these items on their planes. We can expect it to expand and we can also expect ticket prices to increase as little things like insurance go up as a result of the increased risk. The airline industry has barely recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic and is already facing backlash from consumers who have grown weary with increased prices for low-quality services and tiny un-ergonomic seats. A move to regulate or even ban the carrying of pagers, walkie-talkies, laptops and phones could lead to many of them joining the ranks of the once mighty TWA.
The pager attacks are manna from heaven for terrorist groups such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda, and even gangs such as those in Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. We could easily see this become the new norm for these organisations as they seek to eliminate targets in ways that are not easy to track (lest we forget Escobar blew up a plane to get at a target, an act copied from previous airline terror plots).
Police officers and security officers are now, or at least should be, seriously second-guessing the walkie-talkie mechanisms that they use. As they seek to combat the various gangs — some of which have more money than the countries in which they operate — it is not inconceivable that the gangs do the same things alleged to have been done by the Mossad. Is it really that difficult for these gangs to infiltrate these facilities and plant explosives in devices earmarked for private and public security services?
In a world where we already see the porous and murky nature of the supply chain, and gangs and intelligence agencies getting their hands on materials through companies that know they are dealing with gangs but they are well paid to turn a blind eye — think the pre-cursors to drugs — it is not impossible for them and other non-state actors to create links in the production lines of devices to plant explosives. This is a fear we must now realistically think about as a result of Israel and its maniacal instance of destroying the region if it cannot be an apartheid state.
In the medical field, the ramifications will also be felt as all pagers are now suspect until proven otherwise. It is not news that the medical services rely on pagers and walkie-talkies. This allows for quick uninterrupted communication, especially in times of emergency. Hospitals, doctors, nurses, and EMTs are soft targets in normal circumstances, as we in this country know shooting up a hospital or having gunmen run in is proof of this. This action has now made them more vulnerable. What if, for example, the batch of walkie-talkies faced a delivery mix-up and instead were in the hands of the JDF, JCF, some EMT worker at a scene, or just some amateur enthusiast at the time of the terror attack?
What is to stop some gang seeking to terrorise and extort our already weak governance structure from doing this? What is to stop the Klansman and One Order gangs, with their international links, from engaging in these actions?
As far-fetched as it may sound, this is the reality we live in today and it is a result of Israel and the countries which have enabled its colonial mentality. As a result of these actions, states and non-state actors have been given the green light to not just engage in targeted assassinations — something already frowned upon — but open and rank terrorism to achieve their goals. By not condemning this and calling for a global investigation into how this was done we are all saying we are okay with these actions and the consequences that will naturally follow.
It has been shown that nothing is safe, the crazy person with the tin foil hat was right, everything is literally a potential bomb. This empowering and emboldening of conspiracy theories, a lot of which are pumped out by the far right, will also be an unforeseen consequence of this action, especially worrying as the far-right continues its global resurgence.
As the old order continues to break up and declining powers become more desperate to maintain some sliver of the old ways we will see more of these types of attacks. There will be more State-sponsored acts of terror as agencies aim to stymie armies and supply chains, and there will be more of this as the global south continues to shake off the yoke of neo-colonialism.
The birth of the new order will like all births painful. The liberation of the global south will be like all liberations — bloody and with many sad chapters written by the oppressor — but we see where it is being done. This attack, as heinous and dastardly as it was, shows that they are out of options and only have force. If we can stand up and resist that force, not back down in the face of threats and real consequences, we can be free. Are we willing to pay that price is the question.
