The port blast killed more than 200 people and injured thousands. The synchronized explosion of devices used by Hezbollah was widely believed to have been carried out by Israel.

Hundreds of handheld pagers exploded almost simultaneously across Lebanon and in parts of Syria on Tuesday, killing at least nine people, government and Hezbollah officials said. Officials pointed the finger at Israel in what appeared to be a sophisticated, remote attack.

The Israeli attack followed others on Hezbollah rocket launchers and infrastructure in southern Lebanon, after Hezbollah vowed to retaliate for detonations of pagers and radios.