GettyJust as the crowds had gathered to mourn the others who were killed in the middle Tuesday’s wave of bombingsthe explosion caused chaos in Dahiya, a Hezbollah stronghold south of Beirut.
A video captured the explosion, showing a man lying on the ground and people panicking, some screaming, running away.
All this, seconds before the funeral of an 11-year-old boy and three Hezbollah members killed the previous day began.
The surrounding areas were in bedlam as the sound of explosions echoed through the streets. The songs ended. Those gathered looked at each other, some in disbelief.
As reports spread that this was part of a the second wave of explosions now targeting walkie-talkiesno electronics were considered safe.
Hezbollah supporters stopped our group several times, demanding that we not use our phones or our camera.
Officials in Lebanon said at least 14 people were killed and 450 others were injured in the capital and the south of the country, as a number of houses, shops and vehicles were said to have been destroyed.
Already, the latest attack is seen as another embarrassment for the Iran-backed group, and could be an indication that its entire communications network may have been infiltrated by Israel.
Many people here are definitely wondering what will happen next.
This is a country still shocked and outraged by what happened on Tuesday, when thousands of pagers exploded in a parallel attack, after users received a message they believed to be from Hezbollah.
These devices were detonated by people in shops, or with their families at home, and 12 people died, including an eight-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy, and about 2,800 were injured.
Dr Elias Warrak told the BBC it was “a terrible day [his] life as a doctor”. At least 60% of the people he saw lost at least one eye, many also lost a finger or an entire hand.
“I believe that the number of dead and the type of damage done is ridiculous,” he said. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t save a lot of eyes, and unfortunately the damage is not limited to the eyes – some of them have more brain damage than any facial damage.”
Reports suggest that the pager deployment may have been rigged with explosives, before being detonated remotely.
Hezbollah has distributed the pagers amid concerns that the smartphones are being used by Israeli military and intelligence agencies to track and kill its members. It was not immediately clear how Wednesday’s attack might have happened.
Getty ImagesBut Hezbollah has vowed to respond, blaming Israel for the attack. As usual, Israel did not comment.
Once again, the fear is that the violence between the two rivals, which has led to the displacement of tens of thousands of citizens on both sides of the border, could escalate into an endless war.
Hezbollah says its attack on Israel, which began almost a year ago, is in line with the Palestinians in Gaza, and will only stop by laying down their arms, which is currently impossible.
Mourners who spoke to the BBC at the Dahiyeh funeral were also shocked.
Another young man said: “The pain is great, both physical and emotional. But this is something we are used to, and we will continue our resistance. “
A 45-year-old woman told the BBC: “This will make us stronger, the one who lost an eye will fight with the other eye and we are all standing together.”
Hours after the latest explosion, Israel’s defense minister, Yoav Gallant, said his country is “at the beginning of a new phase of the war”, as the 98th division of the Israeli army moves from Gaza to northern Israel.
So far, Hezbollah has shown no interest in another major war with Israel, as Lebanon struggles to recover from a years-long economic crisis. Many here say that the conflict is not in the interest of the country.
But others will definitely want a solid answer. An indication of what Hezbollah may be planning to do may come Thursday, in the first public response of its powerful leader, Hassan Nasrallah.
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