(Photo : Gold Apollo)
Gold Apollo CEO denies role saying franchisee made pagers for Lebanon

Gold Apollo, a Taiwanese pager manufacturer, clarified on Wednesday that the devices used in deadly explosions across Lebanon were not produced by the company, but by a firm named BAC, which holds a license to use Gold Apollo's brand.

At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 injured when pagers, reportedly used by Hezbollah members, detonated simultaneously on Tuesday. Images of the destroyed pagers, analyzed by Reuters, showed similarities to models made by Gold Apollo, and a senior Lebanese security source confirmed that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from the Taiwanese company.

"The product was not ours; it only carried our brand," said Gold Apollo founder and president Hsu Ching-Kuang during a press conference at the company's headquarters in New Taipei. The company issued a statement further distancing itself, explaining that the AR-924 model was manufactured and sold by BAC, a European firm licensed to use its trademark.

"We only provide trademark authorization and have no role in the design or manufacturing of the product," the company's statement read. Hsu declined to provide further details about BAC's location.

Franchisee Made Pagers

While speaking to reporters, Hsu expressed his shock over the incident. "We may not be a large company, but we are a responsible one. This is very embarrassing," he said, adding that Gold Apollo was also a victim of the situation.

Hezbollah, backed by Iran, has launched an internal investigation into the explosions, stating that it is conducting a "security and scientific investigation." The group had turned to pagers as a way to avoid Israeli location tracking, according to sources familiar with their operations.

Reports have emerged alleging that Israel's Mossad planted explosives inside the 5,000 pagers months before the detonations. Hsu, however, said he had no knowledge of how the devices could have been rigged.

As the press conference continued, local police officials arrived at Gold Apollo's offices to further investigate the company's involvement.