Iran Flies Ambassador, 95 Patients Out Of Lebanon After Explosions

Iranian Ambassador Mojtaba Amani is transferred to a hospital on September 17.

Iran has evacuated its ambassador from Lebanon and 95 other patients following injuries sustained in pager explosions, officials said. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi visited the injured diplomat, Mojtaba Amani, at a hospital in Tehran on September 19. State media initially reported that Amani suffered a "slight injury" after hundreds of pagers exploded on September 17. The Lebanese Hizballah militia, a U.S.-designated terrorist group that was the target of the explosions, is Iran's most important nonstate ally. A second wave of communication devices -- this time walkie-talkies -- blew up on September 18. Israel has not publicly admitted responsibility, but the country is widely assumed to be behind the coordinated blasts.