The Ghost of Lebanon’s Beeper… Ukraine Brings the Battlefield to the Eyes
Drawing inspiration from Israel’s strategy of rigging Hezbollah’s beepers in Lebanon, Ukraine has attempted to replicate the concept in its war with Russia by concealing small bombs in protective goggles used by Russian soldiers to control drones.
This was a new Ukrainian espionage plan, modeled after Israel’s successful intelligence operation last year, which involved rigging Hezbollah members’ beepers to explode, according to The New York Times. Kyiv reportedly hid small explosive charges in the goggles Russian soldiers use to control drones and supplied them to the Russian military under the guise of humanitarian aid.
Earlier this month, Russia’s TASS news agency reported on the suspected sabotage of the goggles. Last Thursday, a senior Ukrainian official confirmed that the operation had been orchestrated by Ukraine’s military intelligence agency.
Lebanon’s Beeper
However, the Ukrainian plan did not yield the same results as the beeper explosions in Lebanon, which killed dozens of Hezbollah fighters and injured thousands across the country, including civilians. Nevertheless, multiple goggle explosions have been reported this month.
According to the American newspaper, Ukraine’s primary goal was to make Russian soldiers wary of using protective goggles in the future, at least based on social media posts.
No casualties or injuries have been officially reported. However, the senior Ukrainian official, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, told The New York Times that there were victims but declined to disclose numbers, as the operation was still ongoing.
The booby-trapped goggles are just the latest episode in a long-standing espionage war between Russia and Ukraine. Both sides have been accused of using agents to assassinate military officers and activists.
Ukrainian officials claim that Russia maintains a vast network of sleeper agents and have accused various individuals, including a nurse, a church deacon, and a senior intelligence official. Meanwhile, Russia has accused Ukraine of orchestrating assassinations of prominent figures, including a general killed in a bombing in Moscow and an extreme nationalist commentator.
The Trojan Horse
The senior Ukrainian official stated that Kyiv drew inspiration from Israel’s “Trojan Horse” operation in September when fake companies provided Hezbollah with beepers that later exploded, killing 20 and injuring around 2,700 others. The next day, Hezbollah members’ radios exploded, killing ten more.
Ukrainians knew that Russians did not use beepers or radios but instead relied heavily on FPV-controlled drones, which required specialized goggles.
On February 7, Igor Butapov, an employee at a company developing electronic warfare equipment, complained about modified Skyzone Cobra X V4 drone goggles, made in China.
Although it remains unclear how the goggles were detonated, Butapov claimed they exploded upon activation. He posted images of the goggles’ postal label and components, stating, “Drone goggles received; upon turning them on, an explosion occurs.”
