Glutton for Punishment: Iranian Envoy to Return to Lebanon Following Beeper Injury

Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani, missing one eye and with his left hand bandaged, met with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Tehran on Tuesday ahead of his return to his post in Beirut.

Amani was wounded in Israel’s beeper operation against Lebanon’s Hezbollah terrorist group. He was taken to Tehran for treatment, according to Mehr News Agency, a semi-official news organ of the Islamic Republic.

Thousands of Hezbollah pagers exploded on Sept. 17 across Hezbollah‘s terrorist strongholds in Lebanon. A day later, hundreds of Hezbollah walkie-talkies exploded. The attacks killed 39 people and wounded some 3,000.

A video published by Iranian news outlets in the chaotic aftermath of the attack showed Amani on a street in Beirut, his eyes covered with bandages and the front of his white shirt covered in blood.

According to Iranian media reports, two of Amani’s bodyguards were also wounded when their Hezbollah pagers exploded.

A video released by Iran's state-run media shows the moment the country's wounded ambassador, Mojtaba Amani, is transferred to the hospital following the attack on Hezbollah pagers. pic.twitter.com/DdlUIfSSJn

— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) September 17, 2024

One Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps member said the pagers beeped for about 10 seconds before exploding, prompting some to put the pagers close to their faces to check for a message.

Jerusalem for weeks declined to comment on the pager blasts—the first wave of which came hours after the Israeli Cabinet added the return of displaced northern residents to their homes to the country’s official war goals.

Not until Nov. 10 did Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirm that Jerusalem was responsible for the operation.