Japanese company Icom said it is “currently investigating reports that two-way radios bearing its logo have exploded in Lebanon after an alleged cyber attack.”
“It cannot be confirmed whether the company shipped a product related to the explosions that occurred in Lebanon,” the company said in a statement.
The Japanese wireless communications equipment manufacturer added that “the batteries needed to operate the device were discontinued about 10 years ago.”
The company continued: “There have been reports of an explosion of wireless communication devices bearing our company logo in Lebanon. We are currently investigating the circumstances of the incident.” The company promised to provide additional information based on the results of its investigation.
She explained that “the products it exports abroad are subject to a strict regulatory process set by the Japanese government.”
Likewise, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary, when asked about the explosions in Lebanon, said that he was “aware of the reports regarding Icom’s radios and that the government is collecting information.”
Meanwhile, an official at the Japanese radio manufacturing company, Icom, revealed on Wednesday that “the radios that exploded in Lebanon appear to be counterfeit products and are not manufactured by Icom.”
“I can assure you that these are not our products,” Ray Novak, sales manager for the amateur radio division of Icom America, said in an interview Wednesday with The Associated Press.
Novak also explained that “Icom introduced the V82 model of two-way radios more than two decades ago, and it has long been discontinued. This model is a favorite among radio amateurs, and is used for social or emergency communications, including tracking hurricanes or storms.”
In a related context, the American newspaper, The New York Times, published an article in which it confirmed that “Mossad sent short text messages in Arabic to wireless devices in Lebanon before blowing them up.”
The newspaper quoted Israeli intelligence sources as saying, “It is assumed that some pager owners thought that the messages were sent by the Hezbollah leadership.”
The article noted that “the message was intended to get users to hold the devices close to their heads before they detonated.”
Dozens were killed and thousands injured in Lebanon as a result of two waves of explosions that hit pagers and wireless communication devices in the possession of Hezbollah members in different areas of Lebanon over the past two days.
Last updated: September 19, 2024 – 09:51
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2024-09-21 14:49:22