On Friday, the United Nations human rights chief Volker Türk said last week’s incidents of exploding pagers and walkie-talkies targeting the Tehran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon could constitute a violation of international law.
Speaking at an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council, Türk called for an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the coordinated blasts that occurred on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The senior U.N. official argued to the committee that "international humanitarian law prohibits the use of booby-trap devices in the form of apparently harmless portable objects" and "it is a war crime to commit violence intended to spread terror among civilians."
"I am appalled by the breadth and impact of the attacks," Türk continued before declaring, "this cannot be the new normal."
The detonations, purportedly organized by Israel’s intelligence services, killed an estimated 30 members of Hezbollah and injured an additional 2,800.
In remarks before the powerful U.N. organization, Lebanon’s representative, Abdallah Bouhabib, described the attack as "an unprecedented method of warfare in its brutality and terror," while assigning blame for the operation to authorities in Jerusalem.
Türk’s sentiments were shared by a spokesperson for U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who announced his office was "very concerned about the heightened escalation" in the region before requesting all participants in the conflict show "maximum restraint."
Although Israel has not commented on the matter, the Jewish state's U.N. Ambassador, Danny Danon, told reporters Friday that his government “will do everything we can to target those terrorists.”
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