US Congress needs 'full accounting' of Israel's pager attack in Lebanon: Lawmaker

​​​​​​​By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Israel's pager attack in Lebanon undermines US efforts to prevent a wider conflict, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Wednesday.

"This attack clearly and unequivocally violates international humanitarian law and undermines US efforts to prevent a wider conflict.

"Congress needs a full accounting of the attack, including an answer from the State Department as to whether any US assistance went into the development or deployment of this technology," the lawmaker from New York wrote on X.

At least 21 people, including children, were killed and more than 3,000 others wounded following pager explosions Tuesday and Wednesday in Lebanon, according to Lebanese health authorities.

Hadi Hachem, Lebanon's ambassador to the UN, described the blasts as an "aggression which rises to a war crime," warning that the explosions would exacerbate the conflict.

Israel remains on high alert in anticipation of a response from the Lebanese group Hezbollah.

The pager blasts came amid mounting border escalation between Israel and Hezbollah, which have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of Tel Aviv’s deadly war on the Gaza Strip, which has killed over 41,000 victims, mostly women and children, following a Hamas attack last Oct. 7.