In an interview with the 60 Minutes program published this morning (Monday), details of the Mossad’s secret and extraordinary operation were revealed. The operation, carried out in September last year, involved the use of booby-trapped beepers which caused significant damage to Hezbollah, resulting in dozens of deaths and thousands of injuries. Former Mossad agents, under the pseudonyms “Michael” and “Gabriel,” described how the operation that surprised Hezbollah and impacted its communication and activity network was managed.
“Like The Truman Show, they didn’t know what was happening behind the scenes”
“We have an enormous array of possibilities to create foreign shell companies that cannot be linked to Israel. We create an imaginary world. We are the directors, the producers, the actors, and the world is the stage,” said Michael.
One of the companies established was in Hungary and served to purchase the devices from the Gold Apollo company in Taiwan. According to Gabriel, “We did it like in the movie The Truman Show, they didn’t know what was happening behind the scenes.”
The Washington Post newspaper revealed that the explosive beepers were built in Israel in 2022 and introduced into the supply line of “Gold Apollo” in Taiwan without its knowledge. This ensured that Israel was not linked to the operation.
The Mossad also used advanced marketing and deception techniques to infiltrate the devices into Hezbollah. A saleswoman was recruited and convinced Hezbollah to purchase thousands of beepers on the claim that they were a resilient communication means resistant to Israeli espionage.
“Mossad commanders thought the beeper we built was too heavy and that Hezbollah wouldn’t agree to buy it, but they persuaded it and created fake ads on YouTube where the device was featured as very strong and durable. Even regular buyers wanted to purchase the device but didn’t get it,” Gabriel added.
30 Hezbollah Operatives Killed, Thousands Wounded
The Mossad designed and built beeper devices containing hidden explosives. To ensure that only Hezbollah operatives would be harmed, extensive tests with dummy dolls were conducted. Additionally, the devices were upgraded to hold the required amount of explosives. “We double and triple-checked everything to ensure that innocent people would not be harmed,” Gabriel said.
The devices were activated after a decade of silence when a decision was made by the Mossad due to concerns about the operation’s exposure. Hezbollah operatives received an encrypted message requiring a press with both hands to activate. As a result, about 30 Hezbollah operatives were killed and thousands wounded, including hundreds severely. “These people walking around Lebanon without an eye or a hand are a living testament that one shouldn’t mess with us,” said the Mossad agent.
Hezbollah’s Slippery Slope
Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah saw with his own eyes his men exploding shortly before he was himself eliminated. The immense success of the beepers operation, along with a series of additional defeats suffered by the organization, the elimination of most of its high command chain, and the destruction of most of its weapons caches eventually led to the significant weakening of the terror organization. “Have we completely eliminated Hezbollah? No. But these attacks put Hezbollah in a very difficult position where they begged for a ceasefire,” said Agent Gabriel.
The beepers operation achieved an enormous psychological effect, sowing fear and confusion among Hezbollah operatives and causing significant erosion of their trust in the organization’s systems. According to Michael: “The day after the beepers exploded, people in Lebanon were afraid to even turn on the air conditioner.” The action is perceived as a central milestone that began Hezbollah’s chain of defeats, significantly leading to its weakening. “We’ve already moved on to the next idea, and they’ll have to guess what it is,” concluded the agent.
