AOC Calls for Transparency Over Whether U.S. Had Role in Pager Bombings

[TheProle]

On Tuesday and Wednesday, pagers and small electronic devices belonging to members of Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon. The operation, allegedly carried out by the Israeli intelligence service Mossad, killed at least 10 people — including one child — and injured thousands, according to reports from the Lebanese health ministry.

The devices detonated in two waves at grocery stores, markets, homes, and even at a funeral. U.S. officials indicate the attack was a joint operation between Israeli intelligence forces and military. The attack is the latest bloody incident in a series of escalations between Hezbollah and Israel amid the backdrop of Israel’s ongoing siege against Gaza. Throughout the conflict, Hezbollah militants have backed Hamas, the extremist group controlling the Gaza strip, and leveled a series of remote military operations and rocket attacks against Israel.

With Israel heavily reliant on U.S. military aid and support to carry out its operations, at least one member of Congress is calling for an investigation into whether the U.S. had any role in the planning and execution of this week’s bombings.

“Israel’s pager attack in Lebanon detonated thousands of handheld devices across a slew of public spaces, seriously injuring and killing innocent civilians.” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) wrote on X, formerly Twitter, Wednesday. “This attack clearly and unequivocally violates international humanitarian law and undermines US efforts to prevent a wider conflict.”

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/aoc-demands-answers-lebanon-pager-bombings-1235105834/

[chowder66]

1. The US was "not involved" in the series of pager explosions in Lebanon and was "not aware" of any attack in advance,

according to a State Department spokesperson.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/17/middleeast/lebanon-hezbollah-pagers-explosions-intl/index.html

Israel didn't tell U.S. in advance about Hezbollah pager attack, officials said

A U.S. official said that several minutes before the pagers started exploding across Lebanon, Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant called U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and told him Israel was going to conduct an operation in Lebanon soon, but refused to give any specific details.

The U.S. official said the Israelis didn't tell the U.S. about the specifics of the operation, but added that Gallant's call was an attempt to avoid keeping the U.S. totally in the dark.
Nevertheless, U.S. officials said they didn't see Gallant's call as a serious prior notice. "We were not aware of this operation and were not involved," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday.
Austin spoke to Gallant on the phone twice on Tuesday and discussed the situation, Israeli and U.S. officials said.

https://www.axios.com/2024/09/17/hezbollah-pager-explosion-israel-didnt-tell-biden-administration

[claudette]

2. I hope that

we did not agree to or join in Israel’s murdering and wounding innocents

[MarineCombatEngineer]

5. Oh FFS's, just please stop with the bullshit. nt

This was a targeted op with the intent to disrupt and degrade the abilities of the terrorist org, Hizbollah, to wage war against Israel and to cause minimal collateral damage to the civilian population.
That you can't see that speaks volumes.

[claudette]

12. Blah. Blah.

Blah

[MarineCombatEngineer]

14. Is that the best you got?

Like I said, that speaks volumes.

I think it's pretty clear where you sympathies lie.

[claudette]

17. My translation

Of what you said.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

19. Ok, and..........? nt

[FBaggins]

23. No... MCE got it right

Virtually nobody uses pagers any longer.

It's hard to conceive of an attack any more precisely targeted at terrorist combatants... and yet all you can see is murdering innocents?

Surely you have dozens of posts decrying Hezbolah unguided rocket launched into civilian areas? I can't seem to find them

[womanofthehills]

64. Wrong - drs & nurses in Lebanon often use pagers because internet is spotty

But it’s not just pagers now - solar panels on houses, iPhones, walkie talkies , electric bikes.

This is scary technology. Our iPhones can now blind us or kill us. What other countries can do this?

[NickB79]

65. Hezbollah isn't handing out pagers to doctors

Unless those doctors are also on the Hezbollah payroll.

[FBaggins]

70. These weren't random attacks on pagers

They were pagers and radios specifically inserted into Hezbolah’s supply pipeline. They didn’t develop a technology to turn any pager into a bomb. They found where terrorists were buying their equipment and created explosive versions of the same device

[JohnSJ]

28. and I don't recall much concern when Hezbollah rockets attacked a football stadium killing kids a month or so ago.

The selective concern is noted.

Some seem not to realize there is a war going on.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

32. SPOT ON! NT

[soandso]

57. I agree, as well

and I don't have sympathies for any of the teams. I think the soccer field attack killed at least a dozen, mostly kids and Druze, at that.

While I don't agree with what the Israelis did, just objectively speaking, I have to say this attack was serious genius level stuff and I want to know how they intercepted the shipment to do it.

I expect things to get worse as a result of this.

[sarisataka]

8. Why do you call terrorists "innocents"?

How many Israeli civilians do they have to kill to lose that designation?

[Bad Thoughts]

11. Hezbollah admitted the casualties were almost entirely terrorists

[claudette]

13. Really?

Is that what Israel said?

[Cha]

25. NO IT'S WHAT THE GD FUCKING TERRORIS ORG HEZBOLLA SAID.

[sarisataka]

29. He approves

[MarineCombatEngineer]

34. Google is your friend,

use it, if you dare.

[DiamondShark]

73. Reminds me of Rambo 3.

this film is dedicated to the brave mujahideen fighters of afghanistan.

changed to

this film is dedicated to the gallant people of afghanistan.

It really makes you think.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

36. Ya know, looking over your posts since this war started by HAMAs,

you are quite transparent where your sympathies lie, which is allowed on DU.

[BrianTheEVGuy]

33. Could I have some of your drugs?

They must be absolutely amazing if they lead you to describe Hizbollah as “innocents.”

[Cha]

3. Israel is Fighting Terorism and the US had Nothing

to do with this.

Is she insinuating Pres Biden had something to do with this? They Already said they didn't. Why doesn't she believe Pres Biden?

With Israel heavily reliant on U.S. military aid and support to carry out its operations, at least one member of Congress is calling for an investigation into whether the U.S. had any role in the planning and execution of this week’s bombings.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

6. Thank you Cha.

Some of the posts I'm reading here just blows my mind.
The majority of those condemning Israel are wholly ignorant of what constitutes a war crime and what is allowed under the Geneva Convention.
It's perfectly legal to go after an enemy C&C to degrade their ability to wage war, which is what Israel clearly did, and avoid and minimize civilian causalities.

[wnylib]

10. It's astonishing how many people rush to defend and sympathize with terrorists

while demonizing their victims for defending themselves.

[Cha]

15. I know... I see them, too.

Mahalo for Pushing back against it.

Hamas, Hezbollah, & Iran started these Wars on Israel and they knew what would happen. Terrorists Are Not Going to Be Allowed to Continue Terrorizing Israelis and wipe out their very existence.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

21. That those few on DU who can't see this and are always blaming Israel for everything

is quite revealing.

[Cha]

24. Yeah, not remembering that it was Hamas that

did the GD Vicious Sadistic "Murdering" Sneaking into Israel nearly a Year Ago!

[edisdead]

38. just when I start to really like her

she does shit like this.

[Cha]

43. Exactly. nt

[tishaLA]

66. I swear I heard that Netanyahu didn't even bother to inform Pres Biden

about the impending action until after it happened, which strikes me as especially snakelike.

[Cha]

69. Yeah, mabe AO?C should "Investigate"

Netanyahu if she wants to Investigate something.

[LexVegas]

4. A masterful operation to eliminate terrorists. nt

[Steven Maurer]

9. And AOC's reaction is disappointing to say the least

The overwhelming majority of casualties in this operation hit their intended targets: terrorist Hezbollah commanders. The collateral damage was infinitesimal.

AOC is coming off like a terrorist cheerleader with this missive. Complete with pom-poms.

[Mosby]

7. Hezbollah has been bombing Israel for 11 straight months

More than 8,500 rockets. A month ago they murdered 12 Israeli kids and yet this is the FIRST time AOC has commented about the war Hezbollah declared on Israel, and her first thought was to condemn Israel for fighting back.

[Cha]

20. Thank you for this, Mosby.

[Hekate]

55. This

[Kingofalldems]

16. Nope.

[TheProle]

22. ?

"Nope"?

She didn't call for transparency?
or
She did but needn't have because we were already told?
or
You object to the discussion in general?
or
...

[TheBlackAdder]

18. I heard they would explode when 710 77345 appeared.

[madaboutharry]

27. I am waiting for the posts accusing and condemning the Jews trapped in the Warsaw Ghetto

of terrorism for waging an uprising and sabotage campaign against the Nazis. There were surely some innocent bystanders that must have gotten hurt. 🙁

[BrianTheEVGuy]

35. Yes!

Polish Zionist war criminals attacked innocent law enforcement officers and injured German civilians! WAR CRIME!

And then, to make matters worse, they worked with the Zionist-controlled countries of Britain, Canada, America and the Soviet Union to ruthlessly bomb and destroy innocent German civilians in Germany in a genocide of Nazis! CEASEFIRE NOW! NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE NAZIS NOW! ALL EYES ON BERLIN!

[stopdiggin]

30. Has there been the slightest suggestion (not to mention evidence?)

that the U'S. was tied in with this somehow? If not - I'm not sure if I see the purpose to this statement. Call for transparency .. ?

[iemanja]

31. Let's see

Israel carried out the pager op. The US funds Israel. It's a reasonable question.

[stopdiggin]

39. no. it is not.

this rather distorted (not to mention very naive) perception that the U.S. is responsible for every nuance, thought and action taken by Israel .... Is simply ridiculous!

It's about time some of us stop peddling the absurd notion that Israel is some sort of Mini-me perched on the shoulders of big brother. The cartoon picture is not only simplistic and derivative - but also bears no relation to the truth.

[Cha]

44. I believe Pres Biden... they already said they didn't. so not

"reasonable:.

[iemanja]

47. I didn't know Biden had addressed it.

I believe him too.

[Cha]

50. SOS Antony Blinken.. who works for the President..

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that the U.S. did not know about and was not involved in a wave of exploding pagers targeting Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon, and urged restraint among all parties to avoid escalating further conflict in the Middle East.

https://thehill.com/policy/international/4886155-us-blinken-hezbollah-pager-attack/#:~:text=Secretary%20of%20State%20Antony%20Blinken%20said%20on%20Wednesday,avoid%20escalating%20further%20conflict%20in%20the%20Middle%20East.

[iemanja]

52. So not Biden?

[Cha]

62. Yeah, Pres Biden is going to send his SOS

out there with this Statement because it's not the truth.

AOC is not helping when the Biden Admin said they didn't know about it and are "calling for Restraint".

I bet there are a few factions that would like to Glob onto this and Run with it.. like 3rd party RF Jill Stein, Cornel West, Bob FK Jr.

[Rob H.]

53. Yep nt

[Uncle Joe]

37. These pagers came from Viktor Orban's ruled Hungary and I doubt *rump's hero didn't know in advance.

This operation had been planned for months and you don't do anything of this magnitude in an authoritarian state without the dictator of the nation knowing, and if Orban knew, I believe there is a strong possibility that "shadow diplomat" Kushner and/or *rump knew.

SEPTEMBER 22, 2022 23:02

Jared Kushner receives Hungary's Order of Merit for diplomatic work

Jared Kushner received Hungary's Order of Merit medal on Thursday night in recognition of his work in strengthening relations between Hungary and the US, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced on Thursday.

"Our nurtured political cooperation with the United States peaked under the Trump administration. Our friend Jared Kushner, who served as the Presidential Advisor in the White House, played a huge role in this," wrote Szijjártó on Facebook.

(snip)

https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-717976

Thanks for the thread TheProle

[stopdiggin]

40. what utter twaddle. -(nt)-

[Uncle Joe]

42. Which part do you dispute, that the pagers didn't come from Hungary?

That it didn't take months of planning?

That *rump's heroic "strongman" dictator; Orban wouldn't know what goes on in his own country?

That Orban wouldn't inform Kushner and/or *rump of such an operation?

That any of the three are above such a thing due to ethical or moral reasons?

[onenote]

41. I keep seeing posts asserting that thousands of "civilians" were killed or injured.

Yet I've yet to see any actual report of how many "civilians" actually were injured. The pagers were distributed to Hezbollah members. And while its possible that some Hezbollah members gave them to non-Hezbollah members, that seems unlikely since the purpose of the pagers was for Hezbollah members to securely communicate with each other and with others supporting them, like the Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon, who had one. And from the videos that I've seen, the explosion of these pagers did not impact a broad area, which is why the number of people actually killed is a small fraction of the number of exploding pagers.

But if one of the DUers asserting that 1000s, or even hundreds, of civilians were injured has a source for that assertion, they should present it so it can be judged for its credibility.

I'm not going to hold my breath, but maybe I'll be surprised.

[TommyT139]

46. Sounds like you're asking...

Sounds like you're asking for the exact same thing AOC is. Facts, clearly presented, authoritatively sourced.

[Igel]

56. But she's accusing the wrong people.

I could ask the NYT for information on the "facts" behind what's going on in the Venezuelan press, to see if maybe the NYT is up to eyebrow in it, but oddly I rather doubt that right off the bat.

Why accuse a (D) administration of outright falsehood based on ... Mere suspicion that maybe, just maybe, they were actually the mastermind behind having a small percentage of the actually wounded be civilians.

One view is that war should have 0.000 000 000 000% civilian casualties. It was horrible that we killed a single child in fighting the Nazi invasion.

Sorry, I'm not apologetic about the previous, and today's news (oddly enough) made me smile.

[stopdiggin]

72. No, my friend. AOC is asking what involvement the U.S. had (or may have had)

in the explosions. World of difference there.

[iemanja]

48. The NYTimes reported that over 2000 people had been injured

including an 8 or 9 year old girl. The child was obviously a civilian. We don't know how many of that over 2000 number were civilians. The numbers don't come from "DUers." They come from the press, and are widely accessible to anyone who cares to read the newspapers.

[onenote]

49. There are posters here claiming civilian injuries are in the "thousands".

The press is reporting 2000 injuries from the exploding pagers. They haven't been reporting that there were thousands of civilians injured. But that's what some posters here are saying --- with nothing to substantiate their claims.

And there is at least one press report that the "vast majority" of those treated at one hospital were "young men" -- which is consistent with the reports that the pagers were distributed by Hezbollah to its members for use in secure communications about their terrorist activities. https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/18/world/video/lebanon-pagers-attack-wedeman-digvid

[iemanja]

51. Ah, well I can't vouch for what other people say.

It sounds like they are mistaken or at the least making premature assumptions.

[NickB79]

67. Based on the size of the explosive, almost none are innocent civilians

The explosive charge, and the size of the pager, makes shrapnel almost non existent outside a couple feet. The couple of children killed were almost certainly either holding their Hezbollah-employed father's pager, or standing next to him when his pager on his waist exploded in their face or neck.

These explosions were equivalent to a gunshot, not a hand grenade. The fact that 2000+ were injured, but only a dozen died, further solidifies this fact.

And Hezbollah probably isn't handing out the pagers they personally ordered to non-members, especially given how few people still use them when cellphones are so ubiquitous.

The thousands injured were almost all Hezbollah members, or their family members that they put at risk by joining a terrorist organization in the first place.

[iemanja]

71. The 8 yr old child wasn't innocent?

Is that what you tell yourself?

[Hekate]

45. No, AOC. No.

[LiberaBlueDem]

58. Israel intended for innocents to be injured

If not, the devices would have gone off after bed time

[egduj]

59. This is spot on.

Terrorist nightstands are much more of a threat than the actual terrorists.

[Cha]

63. No they didn't.. and the US was NOT involved.

[NickB79]

68. That's ridiculous

You want the pager ON there terrorists if you want the tiny amount of explosive to injure them.

These weren't hand grenades with any kind of blast radius.

[betsuni]

60. No, the Biden administration did not help plan and execute a diabolical plot to blow up civilians for no reason.

Duh.

[Tarc]

61. If we had a hand in it, I would cheer that

The terrorists will be downgrading to tin cans and string by next week.

[TheKentuckian]

74. Why? A. No indication there was any involvement and B. If there was then good

and stop muckraking to expose sources and methods in a vain effort to virtue signal to and placate the terrorist supporting and Jew hating trash.