Aviation Emirates prohibits the carrying of pagers and walkie-talkies

The airline of the Emirate of Dubai, Emirates, has banned its passengers from carrying radio devices such as pagers and walkie-talkies. All passengers traveling to and from Dubai are "prohibited from carrying pagers and walkie-talkies in their baggage or in the cabin."

This was stated in a statement from the largest airline in the Middle East, based in Dubai. The letter was issued on Friday.

In view of the tense situation in the region, Emirates also extended the suspension of its flights to Iran and Iraq until October 8 and to Lebanon until October 15. On Thursday, the airline had initially canceled all its flights to Iran, Iraq and Jordan until October 5.

In Lebanon, hundreds of walkie-talkie radios belonging to Hezbollah fighters exploded on September 17, following the simultaneous explosion of hundreds of radio receivers, so-called pagers, belonging to Hezbollah members the day before. Pagers and walkie-talkies use their own radio frequency and are therefore considered more reliable than cell phones. Unlike cell phones, communication with these devices cannot be traced, intercepted or blocked. This is why the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia ordered the radios specially.

Pagers rigged with explosives

Israel did not comment on who was responsible for the explosions, which killed 39 people and injured almost 3,000 others. Experts assume that the exploded pagers and walkie-talkies were intercepted and prepared by Israel before they were delivered to Hezbollah.

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah has intensified significantly in recent weeks. On Tuesday evening, Iran attacked Israel directly with missiles for the second time in six months. According to Tehran, this was in response to the Israeli military offensive in southern Lebanon against the Hezbollah militia and the killing of its leader Hassan Nasrallah. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu then announced retaliation. Since then, international efforts have been underway to prevent a further escalation.

SDA