IRGC says no personnel killed in Lebanon pager blasts

TEHRAN – Amidst widespread reports and speculation, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has vehemently denied any casualties among its forces in the pager explosions that shook Lebanon on Tuesday. 

Speaking to the Tasnim news agency on Wednesday, General Ali Mohammad Naeini, spokesperson for the IRGC, categorically refuted rumors circulating on social media and in certain media outlets that IRGC personnel had been killed in the simultaneous blasts. 

General Naeini asserted that no IRGC forces were martyred in the terrorist attack, which involved the detonation of handheld pagers used by Hezbollah forces as well as numerous Lebanese civilians. The incident left at least 12 people dead, including two children, and caused injuries to over 2,800 others, many with serious wounds.

The explosions have been widely attributed to Israel, with reports from the New York Times and Reuters, citing unnamed officials, suggesting that the Israeli regime planted small explosive devices within the pagers. 

Footage circulating online on Tuesday showed Israeli settlers cheering after receiving the news of the Lebanon blasts.