Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presented US president Donald Trump with a golden pager during their meeting in Washington DC on Tuesday, according to Israeli news outlets.
The bizarre gift was a reference to Israel’s deadly pager and walkie-talkie attacks on Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon in September which saw 42 people killed and more than thousands injured.
Trump responded to the gesture by noting that the attack was “a great operation”, according to Israel’s Channel 12.
Across two days in September last year, thousands of handheld pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon detonated wounding around 3,000 people, including the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, who lost an eye.
The attacks were quickly attributed to Israel, but it wasn’t until two months later that Netanyahu finally admitted the Jewish state was behind the operation.
As more details emerged, it became clear that Israel had set up several front companies across Europe to manufacture the devices themselves, successfully infiltrating Hezbollah’s supply chain.
Mossad had deduced that Hezbollah agents were purchasing pagers from a Taiwanese company named Gold Apollo. It then set up a fake company under the same name to manufacture pagers rigged with explosives, without the knowledge of the real supplier.
Hezbollah operatives were then duped into buying thousands of the Israeli-made devices containing, with plastic explosive hidden inside.
Terrorists unknowingly purchased over 16,000 walkie-talkies the fake company over 10 years and the operation expanded two years ago to include pagers.
A photo taken on September 18, 2024, in Beirut's southern suburbs shows the remains of exploded pagers on display at an undisclosed location. (Getty Images)AFP via Getty Images
In return for the gift, Trump presented Netanyahu with a photograph of the two world leaders, with the dedication: “To Bibi, a great leader.”
Speaking to journalists alongside Netanyahu following their meeting, Trump caused a stir after suggesting that the US would take control of Gaza, resettle Palestinians elsewhere and develop the Strip, which he described as a "demolition site right now," into “the Riviera of the Middle East”.
“The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too. We’ll own it,” Trump said.
“We will be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, [for] get[ting] rid of the destroyed buildings, level[ing] it out, creat[ing] an economy development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing to the people of the area.”
Hamas rejected Trump’s proposals as “ridiculous and absurd”, and capable of “igniting the region”, while Saudi Arabia said it would not establish ties with Israel without the creation of a Palestinian state.
