Gold Apollo Clarifies Role in Explosive Pagers Used in Lebanon and Syria Incident
Taiwanese Company Issues Statement on Deadly Incident
Gold Apollo confirmed Wednesday that it authorized the branding on pagers used in the deadly explosions that rocked Lebanon and Syria earlier this week. However, the company emphasized that BAC Consulting KFT, based in Budapest, was responsible for manufacturing the devices.
Deadly Incident Involving Hezbollah
The pagers, used by the militant group Hezbollah, exploded almost simultaneously in Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday, killing at least nine people, including an 8-year-old girl, and injuring more than 2,000 others. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government blamed Israel for what they described as a sophisticated remote attack.
Responsibility and Licensing Agreement
Gold Apollo’s statement on Wednesday clarified the company’s involvement. While they authorized BAC Consulting KFT to use their brand on the AR-924 pagers, they had no role in the design or manufacturing process.
“According to the cooperation agreement, we authorize BAC to use our brand trademark for product sales in designated regions, but the design and manufacturing of the products are solely the responsibility of BAC,” the company stated.
Gold Apollo’s chairperson, Hsu Ching-Kuang, addressed the media, noting that the company had been in a licensing arrangement with BAC for three years, though no direct evidence of the contract was provided.
A Coordinated Attack
The explosions occurred around 3:30 p.m. local time, creating chaos as people went about their daily routines. The pagers, carried in pockets or hands, began overheating before exploding, resulting in a bloody aftermath. Many of the victims were believed to be members of Hezbollah, although it remains unclear if civilians unaffiliated with the group were also impacted.
Lebanese security officials and Hezbollah representatives confirmed that the explosions mainly occurred in Hezbollah strongholds, particularly in southern Beirut, the Beqaa region in Lebanon, and the Syrian capital of Damascus.
Supply Chain Sabotage Suspected
Experts believe that explosive material may have been covertly inserted into the pagers during production, marking a significant breach in the supply chain. The AR-924 model, marketed as a “rugged” device, came equipped with a rechargeable lithium battery and could receive text messages of up to 100 characters.
The pagers were valued for their long battery life—up to 85 days—a critical feature in Lebanon, where power outages are common due to the country’s ongoing economic crisis. Hospitals and other institutions have long favored pagers over mobile phones for their ability to operate on separate wireless networks, providing more reliability in emergencies.
Taiwanese Government Response
Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs revealed that from 2022 to August 2024, Gold Apollo exported approximately 260,000 pagers, with over 40,000 units sold between January and August of this year. According to the ministry, these devices were primarily shipped to European and American markets, and there were no direct records of shipments to Lebanon.
Hezbollah’s Strategic Use of Pagers
Hezbollah viewed pagers as a tactical way to avoid Israeli surveillance of Lebanon’s mobile phone networks. In a speech earlier this year, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned of the dangers of relying on smartphones, which he claimed were being used by Israeli intelligence for surveillance purposes.
“The phone that we have in our hands…is a listening device,” Nasrallah said in February. He added that mobile phones had become “deadly agents” of surveillance, providing precise and real-time information to adversaries.
As investigations into the explosion and possible sabotage continue, both Hezbollah and the Lebanese government are working to determine how such a large-scale infiltration of the supply chain could have occurred.