What we know so far about the deadly pager explosions in Lebanon

Several people were killed and thousands were wounded across Lebanon Tuesday when pagers used by Hezbollah members — including fighters and medics — detonated simultaneously.

Hezbollah blamed Israel for the pager blasts that Lebanese officials said killed nine people and wounded nearly 3,000 others. Hezbollah said an investigation was being conducted into the causes of the explosions. 

Here's what we know so far about the pager blasts.

The detonations began at around 3:30 p.m. local time in Dahiyeh and the eastern Bekaa valley, both southern suburbs of Beirut that are considered Hezbollah strongholds.

After the initial detonation, the wave of explosions lasted about an hour, with Reuters witnesses and residents of Dahiyeh saying they could still hear explosions at 4:30 p.m. local time.

According to security sources and footage reviewed by Reuters, some of the detonations took place after the pagers rang, causing the fighter to put their hands on them or bring them up to their faces to check the screen.

The blasts were relatively contained, according to footage reviewed by Reuters. In two separate clips from security footage of supermarkets, the blasts appeared to wound the person wearing the pager or the person closest to it.

Footage shot at hospitals and shared on social media appeared to show individuals with injuries of varying degrees, including to the face, missing fingers and gaping wounds at the hip where the pager was likely worn.

The blasts did not appear to cause major damage or start any fires.

Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo, a Taiwan-based pager manufacturer.

The firm did not immediately reply to questions from Reuters. Hezbollah did not reply to questions from Reuters on the make of the pagers.

Hezbollah fighters had begun using pagers as a low-tech means to try to avoid Israeli tracking of their locations, two sources familiar with the group's operations told Reuters earlier this year.

Three security sources told Reuters that the pagers that detonated were the latest model brought in by Hezbollah in recent months.

Iran-backed Hezbollah said it was carrying out a "security and scientific investigation" into the causes of the blasts and said Israel would receive "its fair punishment."