GOP Sen. Slams The Associated Press Over Story About Hezbollah Operatives 'Struggle' To Recover From Israeli Pager Attack

Montana Republican Senator Tim Sheehy slammed The Associated Press over a story claiming that Hezbollah operatives are "struggling" to recover from the Israeli pager attack last year.

"The AP is running sob stories for Hezbollah terrorists," said Sheehy in a social media publication.

The piece doesn't specify that Hezbollah has been designated as a terrorist organization in the U.S., describing it as "the most powerful of Iran's armed proxies in the Middle East" and a "major Shiite political party with a wide network of social institutions."

It also described it as "one of the most powerful political factions in Lebanon, with members holding nearly 10% of parliament seats and two ministerial posts," noting that it has "its own security apparatus and offers extensive health, religious and other social and commercial services in southern an eastern Lebanon and parts of Beirut."

The Lebanese government this week authorized the army to draw up a plan to disarm Hezbollah, a decision the group called a "grave sin," saying it will treat it "as if it doesn't exist."

In another passage of the piece, the AP noted that rights groups claim the pager attack was "indiscriminate because the devices were detonated in populated areas, and it was nearly impossible to know who was holding the devices or where they were when they exploded." Israel has rejected the notion, saying pagers were only sold to Hezbollah operatives and tests were conducted to make sure only the person holding the pager would be harmed.

The attack, which left hundreds injured and killed at least 12 (including 2 children) was followed by another similar attack a day later in which hand-held radio devices used by the group also detonated.

A source close to Hezbollah, asking not to be identified, told AFP back then that "the pagers that exploded concerned a shipment recently imported by Hezbollah of 1,000 devices" which appear to have been "sabotaged at source".