It has been revealed that a cargo full of pagers of the same make and model that Mossad used in pager attacks in Lebanon last year was caught on MIT's radar at Istanbul Airport. The cargo, which arrived in Istanbul from Hong Kong just 2 days before the attacks and was waiting to be sent to Lebanon on September 27, turned out to contain 1,300 pagers and 710 chargers with bombs injected into them.
On September 17th last year, the world was shaken by simultaneous explosions in Lebanon. Simultaneous explosions occurred on pagers used by Hezbollah members. Twelve people, including two children, lost their lives in the explosions, and approximately 2,800 people were injured, 300 of them seriously. On September 18th, 25 people died and more than 450 people were injured as a result of the explosion of radios.
Behind the explosions that occurred after messages were sent to the pagers was the Israeli intelligence service Mossad. According to the allegations, Mossad had access to the pagers that Hezbollah was going to buy in advance and placed a large number of explosives in these pagers. The Taiwan-based Gold Apollo company pointed to its Hungarian partner, Bac Consulting KFT, as the company that produced the pagers that were detonated. However, it was claimed that this company was also set up by Israel as a front company.
ON MIT'S RADAR
It has been revealed that these pagers, along with 1,300 pagers of the same make and model loaded with bombs and 710 chargers, were caught on MIT's radar at Istanbul Airport just a few days after the explosions, as they were about to go to Lebanon. SABAH has reached the details of the biggest MIT operation of recent years.
On September 20, MIT received intelligence that pagers similar to those used in the explosions in Lebanon would be sent from Istanbul to Lebanon. MIT immediately took action and began scrutinizing airports and ports. One day before the explosions in Lebanon, on September 16, 4 pallets of cargo, logistics for which were provided by Taiwanese company SMT Global Logistics Limited, arrived at Istanbul Airport on the Hong Kong-Istanbul Cargo plane with flight number TK6141. These pallets contained a total of 61 boxes of 850 kilograms of cargo. It was determined that the cargo was sent to Lebanon on the cargo plane with flight number TK830 Istanbul-Lebanon/Beirut 06:50 on September 27.
The content of the cargo's bill of lading numbered 235 HKG 92890070 was checked. The product information was seen as 'Food Chopper'. Security units took action and the cargoes were opened one by one to be examined by the Istanbul Police Department Bomb Disposal Branch Directorate personnel.
1,300 PIECES OF PAGER 710 PIECES OF CHARGERS AND BATTERIES
In the examinations, 1,300 pieces, 26 boxes of Gold Apollo 924 R3 GP Model 450-470 MHz pagers and their associated charging cables, 710 Desktop Charger BC-144N labeled desktop wireless chargers and the cables and batteries belonging to this device were seized. It was also determined that the cargo content included 144 Mini Hand Blender brand hand blenders, which are valid products on the bill of lading, 8 Network multipliers (Ports) and the cables belonging to this device, 4 Network Devices and the cables belonging to this device, 3 camera recorders and the cables belonging to this device, 1 air cable compression machine and the foot pedal belonging to this device.
EXAMINED IN THE CRIME LABORATORY
Security forces immediately transferred the information they obtained to the Terror Crimes Investigation Bureau Public Prosecutor on Duty. The necessary seizure decisions were made regarding all the materials found. Since the radios and materials in the seized cargo were identical to the pagers used in the action where Israel detonated the pagers in Lebanon, the devices were sent to the Crime Laboratory for the necessary examination to determine whether there were bombs in them.
SAME PAGER, SAME BOMB SYSTEM
All seized products were examined one by one in the Criminal Laboratory. Bombs were searched for especially on pagers and chargers of radios using a special drilling technique. In the preliminary examination of 1,300 26 boxes of Gold Apollo 924 R3 GP Model, 450-470 MHZ pagers and their associated charging cables, a highly flammable and fast burning, white colored explosive substance weighing 3 grams was found inside the solid battery block with a metal body used for the operation of the pager. It was also concluded that these devices could explode as a result of intense signals or commands coming to the device and the batteries heating up to a certain degree, causing death or injury.
BOMBS WERE ALSO INJECTED INTO THE RADIO BATTERIES
A similar bomb mechanism was found inside 710 Desktop Charger BC-144N labeled desktop radio chargers and the cables and batteries belonging to this device. It was determined that, unlike radio batteries used under normal conditions, there was a battery block connected to the battery charging circuit, it consisted of 2 batteries and this block was placed inside a solid metal body material. It was determined that the dark brown, highly flammable explosive substance was later injected into the liquid metal body.
IT CAN BE DETONATED BY A INTENSIVE SIGNAL OR SHORT CIRCUIT
Just like the attacks in Lebanon, it was determined that this dark brown explosive material surrounded the batteries, and that short-circuiting the battery group or sending an intense signal to the device could cause an explosion due to heating, causing injury or death. All seized bomb-laden pagers and chargers were destroyed by security units.
SECOND PLANE ALSO ENTERED THE RADAR
After the detections, the checks carried out by the airport officers were increased to a higher level. It was evaluated that there might be similar materials on a plane flying from Taiwan to Lebanon on the TK6091 Hongkong plane and a search was started. It was determined that there were machines in the content of the bill of lading prepared for the materials on this plane that were capable of receiving, translating and recreating sound, image or other information as product information.
The sender company was again 'Guangzou Maoteng Yu Trading' in China, while the intermediary company was the same company that mediated the explosives on the first plane, SMT Global Logistics Limited. The recipient companies were this time Lebanese companies 'Aramex Lebanon S.A.L.' and 'H. Nehme Trading'.
NO BOMB FOUND IN THOSE MATERIALS
This plane also contained materials such as handheld radios, battery and charging cables, car radios, and mini hand blenders. Bomb Disposal teams did not find any explosive/flammable material in these materials during their preliminary examination.
SENDER CHINA, RECEIVER LEBANESE COMPANY
In the information on the bill of lading regarding the cargo containing chargers containing bombs, it was written that the sender of the cargo was an international logistics and distribution company named 'Guangzhou Maoteng Yu' operating in China. The intermediary company was listed as 'SMT Global Logistics Limited'. When it was determined that this company could be 'SMT Global Customs Consultancy Inc.' located in Zeytinburnu, Istanbul, the owner of the company was put under scrutiny. No judicial or intelligence records were found in the investigation conducted regarding the company owner Gürkan G. The recipient company was listed on the documents as a company named Trade Mania LLC operating in Lebanon, which sells household appliances and electrical and electronic goods wholesale.
NAME SIMILARITY TURNED OUT
The owner of the company in question, Gürkan G., was questioned. He explained that they were doing customs consultancy procedures, that they were not intermediaries in any transportation or shipping, that they were doing the entry procedures of imported products coming to Türkiye, customs clearance procedures or customs clearance and exit procedures of exported products. He said that they knew the company named 'SMT Global Logistics Limited' written on the bill of lading as a company doing international transportation business, that there was no connection between them, and that there was a name similarity. Gürkan G. was released after his statement.
IT WAS THE MAIN AGENDA ITEM OF THE MIKATI AND ERDOĞAN MEETING
It has emerged that this huge operation was also the main agenda item of the Lebanese President's visit to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in December of last year. It was learned that Lebanese President Necip Mikati thanked President Erdoğan for the operation of pagers that were seized and destroyed while he was about to leave for Lebanon. It was among the information obtained that Erdoğan informed his Lebanese counterpart about this operation during the meeting.
