Turkey reviews security of communication devices after Lebanon blasts, official says
Adds comment from Iraq in paragraph 9, Syrian opposition in paragraphs 11-12
ANKARA, Sept 19 (Reuters) -Turkey is reviewing its measures to secure the communication devices used by its armed forces after the deadly blasts in Lebanon, a Turkish defence ministry official said on Thursday.
Hand-held radios used by armed group Hezbollah detonated on Wednesday across Lebanon's south in the country's deadliest day since cross-border fighting erupted between the group and Israel nearly a year ago, stoking tensions after similar explosions of the militants' pagers the day before.
The blasts appeared to throw Hezbollah, Iran's most powerful proxy in the Middle East, into disarray, and occurred alongside Israel's 11-month-old war against Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza and heightened fears of an escalation and regional war.
The Turkish official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Turkey's military exclusively used domestically-produced equipment but Ankara had additional control mechanisms in place if a third party is involved in procurement or production of devices.
"Whether in the operations we carry out, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and as with the Lebanon example, measures are reviewed and new measures are being developed as part of the lessons learned following each development," the official said.
"In the context of this incident, we as the Defence Ministry are carrying out the necessary examinations," the person added, without providing further detail.
In Tuesday's explosions, sources said Israeli spies remotely detonated explosives they planted in a Hezbollah order of 5,000 pagers before they entered the country.
The unprecedented attacks have prompted concerns over cyber-security around the region.
Iraq's national security council said on Wednesday it would take preventive measures against any possible breach from electronic imports, adding that intensive security checks will be implemented on imports along with stronger border checks.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Thursday told state-owned Anadolu news agency that establishing an independent agency for cyber-security specifically was on the government's agenda after President Tayyip Erdogan voiced a necessity for it, and added it would be formed "very soon".
Hadi Al Bahra, president of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, told Reuters in an interview in Istanbul on Thursday that the blasts in Lebanon had prompted some opposition forces in northern Syria to rethink the security of communication devices and supply chains.
"It's a point of concern for them and they are reviewing their gear," he said of the Syrian National Army, an opposition faction backed by Turkey which controls swathes of territory in northern Syria.
Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Additional reporting by Timour Azhari in Baghdad and Jonathan Spicer in Istanbul; Editing by Daren Butler, William Maclean
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