On Tuesday, 9 people were killed in Lebanon, including a girl and two Hezbollah members, and more than 2,800 people were injured, most of them in the hand, according to data from the Lebanese Ministry of Health.
This was as a result of explosions that struck pager-type communication devices that were in the possession of many members of the various Hezbollah institutions, who were present in various places in the southern suburbs of Beirut and southern Lebanon.
Lebanese official and military sources suggested that Israel was behind what they described as a “cyber and hostile” attack.
Israel did not claim any responsibility for the simultaneous explosions.
According to Reuters, citing Lebanese security sources, the targeted pagers were “of the latest model that they had obtained in the past few months.”
This requires addressing the information spread about these devices? What are the reasons for its use, and the extent of its spread in today’s world, which often relies on smartphones.
Pager or whistle
The "pager" or "pepper" (a pager or whistle device due to the sound it emits) is a wireless communication device that receives and displays alphanumeric texts or voice messages, and emits a sound when it receives a signal.
These devices are no longer as popular as they were in the 1990s among the general public, but some workers in the fields of public safety and health care, for example, still use them.
In the late twentieth century, these devices revolutionized personal and professional communications, enabling people to send and receive messages on the move without the need for landlines, but their popularity decreased over time due to the emergence of newer devices with greater features.
From rise to decline
Below is a timeline that monitors the rise and fall of pagers.
1921 - The Detroit Police Department first used a pager-like system with police cars in 1921. Later, Al Gross obtained a patent for what was then called a telephone pager.
1950 - It became relevant in health care when the Jewish Hospital in New York City began using it in 1950.
1959 - Motorola coined the name "pager" for this device. In the 1970s, developers added tone and voice pagers
1959 - Motorola coined the name "pager" for this device. In the 1970s, developers added tone and voice pagers that enabled users to send and receive voice messages.
1980 - Pagers were so widely used by the 1980s that they reflected the social status of the wearer.
1994 - Became relevant in personal communication.
Most of its users today are emergency medical technicians and firefighters, as it helps them make decisions more quickly during emergency situations, and the batteries do not drain as quickly.
It is also used by many doctors and healthcare professionals to communicate with each other, due to the simplicity and speed of recall, as well as maintaining the confidentiality of sensitive patient data, as it is more reliable for them than smart devices.
Among the characteristics that make these devices popular among military organizations and factions is that they are difficult to track, as happens with smart devices, and the exchange of texts and voice messages in them may lack context (depending on their type) and they do not require a SIM card, as they work through radio signals to transmit messages. It has a strong signal network, so it may work more than modern devices in rural and remote areas.
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