Lebanon seeks UN labor body intervention over deadly pager explosions, citing worker casualties and safety concerns. (AP/Jamey Keaten)
- Lebanon files complaint against Israel at ILO, alleging worker deaths from exploding pagers and walkie-talkies.
- Lebanese minister warns of dangerous precedent, as everyday objects become potential weapons in conflict.
- ILO conventions cited to protect worker safety, as Lebanon raises alarm over new warfare tactics.
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GENEVA — Lebanon filed a complaint against Israel at the U.N.’s labor organization over the string of deadly attacks involving exploding pagers, saying workers were among those killed and injured, a Lebanese government minister said Wednesday.
Wave of Explosions Blamed on Israel
The wave of remotely triggered explosions that hit pagers and walkie-talkies carried by Hezbollah members in mid-September were widely blamed on Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied involvement. The blasts which went off in grocery stores, homes and on streets killed at least 37 people, including two children, and wounded around 3,000 people, according to Lebanese authorities, deeply unsettling even Lebanese who have no Hezbollah affiliation.
In addition to fighters, the detonating devices hit workers in Hezbollah’s civilian institutions, including its health care and media operations.
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Complaint Filed at International Labor Organization
Lebanese Labor Minister Moustafa Bayram and other officials said he traveled to Geneva and formally filed the complaint Tuesday against Israel at the International Labor Organization, a sprawling U.N. agency that brings together governments, businesses and workers.
“This method of warfare and conflicts may open the way for many who are evading international humanitarian law to adopt this method of warfare,” he told reporters at the U.N. compound in Geneva.
“It’s a very dangerous precedent, if not condemned,” he said. “We are in a situation where ordinary objects — objects used in daily life — become dangerous and lethal.”
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Concerns Over Worker Safety and Security
Speaking in Arabic, Bayram insisted that ILO conventions guarantee the safety and security of workers, who “were in their workplace and had their pagers or walkies-talkies exploding all of a sudden,” according to an interpreter.
“I do not know where the outcome (of the complaint) will go, but at least we raised our voices to say and warn against this dangerous approach that strikes at human relations and leads to more conflicts,” he added.
An ILO spokeswoman said she was not immediately aware of the complaint or what redress might be possible through it.
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