Japanese Company Denies Link to Exploding Walkie-Talkies Used by Hezbollah

A Japanese manufacturer, ICOM, has firmly denied allegations that it produced walkie-talkies connected to recent explosions targeting the Hezbollah armed group in Lebanon, which resulted in the deaths of 25 people and injuries to hundreds more. Yoshiki Enomoto, a director at ICOM, stated that it would be impossible for a bomb to be integrated into their devices during the manufacturing process due to the high level of automation and rapid pace of production.
The explosions occurred in Beirut’s suburbs and the Bekaa Valley, following a prior detonation of an electronic pager that killed at least 12 people, including two children. ICOM noted that it had ceased production of the radio models involved in the attack a decade ago and warned that many devices still in circulation may be counterfeit.
“If it turns out to be counterfeit, we will need to investigate how someone created a bomb that resembles our product. If it’s genuine, we’ll trace its distribution to determine how it ended up in that context,” Enomoto added.
A representative from Power Group, Lebanon’s official distributor of ICOM products, confirmed that they did not import the detonated model and emphasized that it was discontinued in 2014. They only handle models currently in production, and there were no detonations reported in their stores or warehouses.
Additionally, Taiwan’s Gold Apollo, whose trademark appeared on the pagers, has denied producing the devices, attributing responsibility to its Budapest-based partner, BAC Consulting KFT. As investigations continue, questions remain about the origin and distribution of these explosive devices.