National Security Commission Expresses Concern Over Potential 'Similar Incident' to Pager Explosions in Iran

The head of the National Security Commission of the Parliament reported the members' concerns regarding the occurrence of a 'similar incident' to the explosions of Hezbollah's pagers in Iran. According to Ebrahim Rezaei, the head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, this concern was raised during an extraordinary meeting on Saturday, October 2, regarding the pager explosions in Lebanon, which was attended by the Minister of Communications and several of his deputies, the assistant foreign minister, the director general for West Asia and North Africa, and experts and representatives from the Parliament's Research Center. Mr. Rezaei stated about the content of this meeting: 'The members expressed concern that a similar operation could also take place in Iran' and called for 'protection of the country's sensitive and vital centers.' According to Mr. Rezaei, during this meeting, the Minister of Communications also mentioned that 'the registration system must be strengthened' concerning imported telecommunications items. These remarks come after a suspicious explosion of thousands of pagers (Pijou) and radios belonging to Hezbollah in Lebanon last week, which left dozens dead and thousands injured, disabled, and blind. Following this, the Islamic Republic of Iran began inspecting its communication equipment and other devices due to fears of Israeli infiltration. On Tuesday, October 2, Reuters reported in an 'exclusive' article, citing an Iranian security official, that a 'widespread operation' by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to inspect all devices, not just the communication equipment of these entities, has begun in Iran. The report indicates that the IRGC has also ordered all its forces to refrain from using any type of communication device. Based on this report, the use of such equipment at Iran's nuclear and missile sites has also been halted. The news from Reuters was published a day after the IRGC announced on October 1 the arrest of 12 members of 'a network' linked to Israel in six provinces of Iran on charges of 'conducting anti-security actions against the people,' but did not indicate any potential connection between these arrests and concerns over communication equipment. Ebrahim Rezaei, the spokesperson for the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, also stated on Tuesday that during the extraordinary parliamentary session with several high-ranking officials, including the Minister of Communications, it was emphasized that the pager issue 'has no connection' to the helicopter crash of Ebrahim Raisi, the former president of Iran, and his entourage. This statement was made because, after the pager explosions in Lebanon, unverified images circulated on social media suggesting that Raisi used similar pagers. Although these pagers were later introduced as 'watches' on social media, many speculations arose regarding a potential link between the explosion of these pagers and the helicopter crash carrying Ebrahim Raisi and his entourage. The helicopter, which was carrying the former president of Iran, the former foreign minister, and several others, crashed on May 30 in the heights of the Varzeqan region of East Azerbaijan province, killing all on board. Recently, Ahmad Bakhshaei Ardestani, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, referred to the injury of the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon due to possessing one of these pagers, stating: 'Based on information from some intelligence and military forces, martyr Raisi also used a pager.' He added in an interview with the Iran Watch website: 'Of course, the type of pager [Raisi's] may have differed from the one in the hands of Hezbollah forces, but one of the plausible scenarios regarding the incident that befell our late president is the explosion of his pager.' The Iranian Armed Forces General Staff stated that 'complex weather conditions of the spring season' were the cause of Raisi's helicopter crash. However, the high commission assigned by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic to investigate the crash reported that the cause of the incident was 'complex climatic and weather conditions' in the area that caused the helicopter to collide with a mountain. The report ruled out the possibility of the helicopter being targeted by 'offensive and defensive systems, electronic warfare, and the creation of magnetic and laser fields.' This comes as contradictory statements and narratives from officials and media of the Islamic Republic began immediately after the incident and continued for days. Reactions to these contradictory narratives have been widespread, with even some government-affiliated figures and domestic media expressing significant criticism despite the security atmosphere and threats in this regard. On the other hand, the Islamic Republic's inability to locate the exact crash site and the wreckage of the helicopter became newsworthy, and the process of finding and officially confirming the deaths of the former president and his companions took 18 hours.