The pager explosions in Lebanon this week put a spotlight on a low-tech communication method that Hezbollah reportedly turned to as a means of evading Israeli intelligence and their tracking of cellphones. The Wall Street Journal reports that another of Israel's foes, Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, has gone even lower-tech in his efforts to remain undetectable. Rather than relying on electronic devices, it reports Sinwar uses "a complex system of couriers, codes, and handwritten notes"; that has allowed him in part to communicate with Arab cease-fire mediators, who described the practice.
Sinwar hasn't been seen since Hamas invaded Israel on Oct. 7; Israel officials believe he has remained in Gaza, likely in its underground tunnels, which are also said to have a landline telephone network. As the Journal explains:
- "A typical message from Sinwar will now be handwritten and first passed to a trusted Hamas member who moves it along a chain of couriers, some of whom might be civilians, the mediators said. The messages are often coded, with different codes for different recipients, circumstances and times, building on a system that Sinwar and other inmates had developed while in Israeli prisons."
The Journal explains that prison system was created decades ago by the "sawa'ed"—inmates who were recruited by Hamas and would reportedly get messages across prison sections by encasing handwritten letters in white bread that was rolled into a ball, left to harden, and then thrown like a baseball. (Read the full article for more, including a look at times when Sinwar has managed to send messages in near-real time.)
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