GENEVA (19 September 2024) – UN human rights experts* today condemned the malicious manipulation of thousands of electronic pagers and radios to explode simultaneously across Lebanon and Syria as “terrifying” violations of international law. The attacks reportedly killed at least 32 people and maimed or injured 3,250, including 200 critically. Among the dead are a boy and a girl, as well as medical personnel. Around 500 people suffered severe eye injuries, including a diplomat. Others suffered grave injuries to their faces, hands and bodies. “These attacks violate the human right to life, absent any indication that the victims posed an imminent lethal threat to anyone else at the time,” the experts said. “Such attacks require prompt, independent investigation to establish the truth and enable accountability for the crime of murder. “We express our deepest solidarity to the victims of these attacks,” they said. The pagers and radios were reportedly distributed mainly among people allegedly associated with the Hezbollah movement, which includes civilian and military personnel and is involved in an armed conflict with Israel along the border. “To the extent that international humanitarian law applies, at the time of the attacks there was no way of knowing who possessed each device and who was nearby,” the experts said. “Simultaneous attacks by thousands of devices would inevitably violate humanitarian law, by failing to verify each target, and distinguish between protected civilians and those who could potentially be attacked for taking a direct part in hostilities. “Such attacks could constitute war crimes of murder, attacking civilians, and launching indiscriminate attacks, in addition to violating the right to life,” the experts said. Humanitarian law additionally prohibits the use of booby-traps disguised as apparently harmless portable objects where specifically designed and constructed with explosives – and this could include a modified civilian pager, the experts said. A booby-trap is a device designed to kill or injure, that functions unexpectedly when a person performs an apparently safe act, such as answering a pager. “It is also a war crime to commit violence intended to spread terror among civilians, including to intimidate or deter them from supporting an adversary,” the experts warned. “A climate of fear now pervades everyday life in Lebanon,” they said. The experts urged the UN to carry out a prompt, effective, thorough, impartial, and transparent investigation into the attacks, for which they offered assistance. “States must bring to justice those who ordered and executed these attacks, including by exercising universal jurisdiction over war crimes,” they said. The experts urged all parties to refrain from further violations of humanitarian law and settle their disputes peacefully in accordance with international law. “The escalation of violence destabilises the whole region. The Security Council and the General Assembly must act to restore peace and justice,” they said. *The experts: Ben Saul, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism; Morris Tidball-Binz, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Farida Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on the right to education; George Katrougalos, Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order; Surya Deva, Special Rapporteur on the right to development; Margaret Satterthwaite, Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers; Laura Nyirinkindi (Chair), Claudia Flores (Vice-Chair), Dorothy Estrada Tanck, Ivana Krstić, and Haina Lu, Working group on discrimination against women and girls; Gina Romero, Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association; Balakrishnan Rajagopal, Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing; Tlaleng Mofokeng, Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health; Pedro Arrojo-Agudo Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation; Irene Khan, Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Barbara G. Reynolds (Chair), Bina D’Costa, Dominique Day, Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent; Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967; Ms. Heba Hagrass, Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities and Reem Alsalem Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences. UN Human Rights, Country Page: Lebanon, Syria For more information and media requests, please contact hrc-sr-ct@un.org For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts please contact Dharisha Indraguptha (dharisha.indraguptha@un.org) or John Newland (john.newland@un.org) Follow news related to the UN"s independent human rights experts on Twitter: @UN_SPExperts