Media Wire

Lebanon files complaint with UN against Israel over pager attacks

Beirut announced that it had filed a complaint with the United Nations’ labour agency over the deadly attacks on communication devices across Lebanon in September, which it blames on Israel.

Lebanese Labour Minister Mustafa Bayram called the attack an “egregious war against humanity, against technology, against work”, saying his country had filed the complaint with the International Labour Organization in Geneva.

“It’s a very dangerous precedent,” he told journalists in the Swiss city at an event organised by the UN correspondents’ association ACANU.

The move comes after Israel escalated its air raids on Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon on September 23, after nearly a year of cross-border fire.

The escalation kicked off with sabotage attacks on pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah, which killed dozens of people and injured thousands more across Lebanon.

Israel has not officially taken responsibility for those attacks, but Bayram stated it was “widely accepted internationally… that Israel was behind this heinous act”.

“In a few minutes, more than 4,000 civilians fell, between martyrs and injured and maimed,” he continued, speaking through a translator.

Among the victims not killed, he said many people had “lost their fingers; some have totally lost their eyesight”.

“We are in a situation where ordinary objects, objects you use in daily life, become dangerous and lethal,” he added.

“If left unchecked, this crime could become normalised,” he said, adding that filing the complaint was meant “to prevent such crimes from happening in the future”.

“I consider it a moral obligation to my country and to the world.”

Asked why Lebanon had chose to file the complaint with the ILO, Bayram pointed to all the workers who were on the job when pagers and walkie-talkies — tools they used to do their work — suddenly exploded.

“We deemed it necessary to point out that this runs contrary to work environment, security and safety, contrary to decent work principles… defended by the ILO,” he said.

He added that Lebanese authorities could still file complaints over the pager attacks in other international forums, including the World Trade Organization.

“In more general terms, the Lebanese government wants to… present a myriad of complaints” against Israel over its operations in the country, he said, since “the amount of crimes is huge”.

More than 3,000 people have been killed in Lebanon since clashes between Hezbollah and Israel began in October 2023, according to the health ministry, including nearly 2,000 since September 23.

IFP Media Wire

Reports and views published in the Media Wire section have been retrieved from other news agencies and websites, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website. The IFP may change the headlines of the reports in a bid to make them compatible with its own style of covering Iran News, and does not make any changes to the content. The source and URL of all reports and news stories are mentioned at the bottom of each article.

Recent Posts

Too early to predict future of Syria: Iran FM

It is “too early” to make any predictions for Syria’s future as there are a…

2 hours ago

President Pezeshkian calls for Support for Palestine in Message to Pope

In a message to the Pope on Christmas Day, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has urged…

2 hours ago

Iranian company unveils vacuum distillation device for oil product quality measurement

An Iranian knowledge-based company has developed a vacuum distillation device that is now being used…

6 hours ago

Christmas spirit in Tehran

As the New Year 2025 approaches, a warm and festive atmosphere envelops Iran’s capital of…

6 hours ago

Iranian president meets Christians, urges solidarity

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has expressed solidarity with Christians, highlighting endeavours for peaceful coexistence in…

7 hours ago

Israel provides full support for theft of humanitarian aid to starve Gazans: Report

Israel has provided full support for the theft of humanitarian assistance, killing security personnel to…

7 hours ago