Company Says It Is Investigating Radios Targeted in Lebanon Blasts – The New York Times
Middle East Crisis
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The Japanese electronics manufacturer Icom said it stopped making the walkie-talkie model in 2014 and has warned about fake versions for several years.
River Akira Davis
Reporting from Minamiuonuma, Japan
The Japanese manufacturer whose name was on handheld radios that exploded in Lebanon said Thursday that it had discontinued the device a decade ago and was investigating what happened.
The company, Icom, a telecommunications equipment maker based in Osaka, Japan, had shipped IC-V82 transceivers — the model whose name is seen on radios in photos and a video of the aftermath of Wednesday’s attacks — to overseas markets, including the Middle East, from 2004 to October 2014.
Icom said in a statement Thursday that it had not shipped any of the IC-V82 radios from its plant in Wakayama, Japan, in roughly a decade. But the company has long warned of what it called a surge in counterfeit IC-V82 transceivers.
Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, Yoshimasa Hayashi, said on Thursday that the Japanese government was looking into the matter.
At least 25 people were killed and over 600 injured on Wednesday when walkie-talkies owned by Hezbollah members exploded across Lebanon, the country’s health minister said. It was unclear where Hezbollah purchased the devices that exploded.
Icom, founded in 1954, sells radios and other products in more than 80 countries and has about 1,000 employees. According to the company, it has supplied electronics gear to public safety organizations and the U.S. Department of Defense and Marine Corps.
Icom said it has no inventory of the IC-V82 model and has issued warnings saying that “almost all” IC-V82 radios available for purchase are counterfeit. Icom said it has taken legal action against counterfeit manufacturers and has warned about fake models since at least 2020.
A day before the radio explosions, blasts from pagers killed at least 12 people and wounded over 2,700 others in Lebanon. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied any role in the explosions, but 12 current and former defense and intelligence officials briefed on the attack say the Israelis were behind it.
Companies that make two-way radios say the devices typically have a life span of about five to seven years, though that can depend on their usage.
“Copies of these models are floating in the market,” Icom has said in warnings posted online. Authentic products have a hologram label that says “Icom” and “genuine,” according to the company.
Icom said on Thursday that because the devices that exploded in Lebanon were not fixed with the counterfeit-prevention sticker, it was not possible to confirm whether they had originated with the company. Icom declined to specify how it determined that the radios did not have the label.
The company said it sells products only to authorized distributors and that it upholds strict export controls based on regulations set by Japan’s economy ministry. The company said it would continue to provide updates when it receives new information.
Counterfeit versions of the radios are at risk of catching fire or exploding because of battery malfunctions, Icom said. Many are labeled “made in China,” according to Icom. The company said that all of its radios are produced at factories in Japan.
The devices were readily available online on Thursday. At least two vendors on Taobao, a Chinese e-commerce marketplace, were selling what they said were Icom IC-V82 walkie-talkies, one for $32 apiece and the other for $34. Three vendors were selling what was listed as the Icom walkie-talkie on another Chinese e-commerce platform, JD.com, and quoted prices of $35, $55 and $104.
A website that aims to connect Chinese suppliers with buyers overseas, available in over a dozen languages, offered the IC-V82 for $38 each if purchased in an order of 1,000 or more.
Keith Bradsher contributed reporting from Beijing and Li You contributed research.
River Akira Davis covers Japan, including its economy and businesses, and is based in Tokyo. More about River Akira Davis
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