The Guardian – Fears of escalation as second wave of deadly explosions hits Lebanon
The Guardian has an image of relatives at the funeral of a 10-year-old girl killed in the first attack – involving exploding pagers. The paper says international observers are warning the explosions of thousands of electronic communication devices may be a war crime.
Elsewhere, the front page has a report on the Sue Gray pay scandal. The paper says there has been fury amongst Labour colleagues at the news Gray earns more than the PM.
Walkie-talkie blasts: attacks on Hezbollah kill 20 as Israel says military focus shifting north
A new series of extraordinary explosions aimed at Hezbollah – this time targeting walkie-talkies – has killed at least 20 and wounded more than 450 in cities across Lebanon, as international observers warned that the simultaneous detonation of thousands of booby-trapped communications devices may constitute a war crime.
The targeted detonations of the walkie-talkies came one day after more than 2,800 were injured and 12 killed by exploding pagers in an attack blamed on Israel that world leaders and diplomats have warned could lead to an all-out conflict between Israel and the powerful militant group despite efforts by the US and UN to avert an escalation with Hezbollah.
A source in Hezbollah confirmed that walkie-talkies used by the group were targeted in Wednesday’s attack. A senior security source said the individual explosions were “small in size”, similar to Tuesday’s attacks.
Sue Gray’s £170,000 pay prompts fury among Labour advisers
Sue Gray has been given a salary of £170,000 as Keir Starmer’s chief of staff – more than the prime minister – prompting fury among Labour colleagues who have taken lower pay since entering government.
Gray was given a pay rise after the election despite other political special advisers being unhappy that their salary was reduced compared with their previous jobs at the Labour party.
The BBC first reported that Gray was paid £3,000 more than Starmer’s salary of £166,786.
One source told the broadcaster: “It was suggested that she might want to go for a few thousand pounds less than the prime minister to avoid this very story. She declined.”
Government sources, however, disputed that claim. One said: “This allegation is categorically untrue. Sue Gray had no involvement in any decision on her pay. She was informed of her salary after this had been set.”
Today’s news summary – Paper Talk
If you are someone who reads every perspective of a story, here is a news summary of all of today’s front pages from today’s newspapers; summarised in a 2-minute read
Editorial 19 September 2024.
Thursday’s front pages continue to be dominated by the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. Electronic pagers across Lebanon exploded simultaneously on Sept. 17, 2024, killing 12 and wounding more than 2,700. The following day, another wave of explosions in the country came from detonating walkie-talkies. The attacks appeared to target members of the militant group Hezbollah.
Israel has yet to comment on the attack but on Wednesday Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared that the conflict had entered “a new phase.”