Israel says foiled Hezbollah assassination plot

Israel's Shin Bet security agency said Tuesday it had foiled a plan by Lebanese group Hezbollah to kill a former security official with a remote-controlled device.

A Shin Bet statement, which said the plot was foiled "in its final stages", was issued before paging devices used by Hezbollah members exploded on Tuesday, in an attack that the Iran-backed group blamed on Israel.

The wave of blasts across Lebanon, which Beirut's health ministry said killed nine people and injured some 2,800 others, added to soaring tensions after nearly a year of cross-border exchanges throughout the Gaza war.

Israeli agents "uncovered a Claymore explosive device, known to be used by Hezbollah, which was intended to target a high-profile individual" in the coming days, said the Shin Bet statement shared with news agency AFP by the Israeli military.

"The device was equipped with a remote activation mechanism, with a camera and cellular technology, enabling it to be activated by Hezbollah from Lebanon," it added.

According to Shin Bet, the same type of explosive device was used by Hezbollah in September 2023 in a failed assassination attempt in Tel Aviv that had similarly targeted a senior Israeli official.

The security agency did not name the targeted official or give details of the planned Hezbollah attack, but said it was "in its final stages of execution".

"The Hezbollah operatives involved in this latest incident were also behind the September 2023 attack," the agency said.

Hezbollah has traded near-daily fire with Israeli forces in stated support of Palestinian ally Hamas.

The cross-border exchanges have killed hundreds of mostly fighters in Lebanon, and dozens on the Israeli side.