Israeli Communications Minister hints at responsibility for Lebanon explosions

Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi hinted at Israel’s responsibility for recent explosions of wireless communication devices in Lebanon, which resulted in 26 deaths and more than 3,250 injuries.

Karhi, a member of the Likud party led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, suggested Israel’s involvement in the blasts that occurred Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.

The newspaper reported that Karhi referenced a passage from the Torah on social media, which seemed to allude to responsibility for the explosions.

The verse posted by Karhi on X reads: “Desolation, emptiness, ruin and the heart melts and the knees bow and the blood flows in every way.”

The verse is from the book of Nahum, believed to have been written between 663 and 612 BCE, and discusses the prophecy of the fall of the Assyrian Empire during the Babylonian exile.

Karhi’s post sparked mockery and criticism among Israelis on X, with some labeling the minister as “foolish.”

“Thank you to the minister for taking official responsibility,” said one user, while another asked, “A government minister suggesting we are responsible?”

Other comments included sarcastic remarks such as, “Stop proving your stupidity to us; we already understood,” and, “For a moment, we forgot how foolish you are.

At least 14 people were killed and more than 450 injured Wednesday in a new wave of wireless communications device explosions that targeted thousands of pagers and Icom wireless devices used by members of the Lebanese resistance group, Hamas, and medics across Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry.

It is the second consecutive day of device explosions, which have so far killed 26 and injured more than 3,250.

The blasts came amid mounting border escalation between Israel and Hezbollah, which have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of Tel Aviv’s deadly onslaught against the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 41,000 victims, mostly women and children, following a Hamas attack last Oct. 7.