Dubai’s Emirates Airline has banned pagers and walkie-talkies on its flights, responding to recent attacks linked to the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah. In a statement released on Friday, the airline announced that all passengers traveling to or from Dubai are prohibited from carrying these devices in both checked and cabin baggage.
“Such items found in passengers’ hand luggage or checked luggage will be confiscated by Dubai Police,” the airline warned.
The decision comes in the wake of alarming incidents where thousands of pagers exploded simultaneously across Lebanon, followed by walkie-talkies that also exploded in a similar manner. Lebanese officials have blamed Israel for the attacks, increasing tensions in the region. At least 37 people, including children, were killed and approximately 3,000 others were injured as a result of these twin device attacks.
According to a Lebanese security source, the explosive material was cleverly concealed within the pager’s lithium battery, making it virtually undetectable.
Apart from the ban on pagers and walkie-talkies, Emirates confirmed it would resume services to the Jordanian capital Amman on Sunday.
Emirates has announced that flights to and from Beirut will remain canceled until October 15, and passengers passing through Dubai to reach Beirut will not be allowed to travel from their point of origin until further notice.
Flights to and from Iraq and Iran will remain canceled until at least Monday. Other airlines in the region have also canceled flights to Beirut and several other airports as security concerns continue to grow.
The situation worsened over the weekend when Israeli warplanes carried out significant airstrikes on southern Beirut on Saturday. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that their goal was to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure and warned residents to evacuate the area before the attack.
Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon since September 23 have killed more than 1,110 people and displaced more than one million. Reports indicate that a senior Hezbollah leader, Hashem Saffieddin, is missing, with communications broken amid the bombings.
