Rinson Jose, an Indian-origin man, who has been linked to the Hezbollah pager blasts in Lebanon, has been reported missing since the detonations. An international arrest warrant was also issued by the Norwegian authorities against him.
Jose, who is reportedly from Kerala's Wayanad, was purportedly behind the sale of the communication devices used by the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
The man has been reported missing since the blasts that killed over 30 people in Lebanon prompting security forces to issue an international arrest warrant against him, Norwegian police said on Thursday.
Here are key points on Indian-origin man involved in Hezbollah pager blasts:
1- As per media reports, Rinson Jose was born in Kerala's Wayanad and went to Norway for higher studies a few years ago. He briefly worked in London before he went back to Oslo, where he was settled with his wife before disappearing.
2- Jose's relatives, who are confident that he has no involvement with these blasts, told news agency IANS that he lives in Oslo with his wife. "We speak daily over the phone. However, for the last three days, we have had no contact with Jose. He is a straightforward person and we trust him fully," one of the relatives said.
{{/usCountry}}2- Jose's relatives, who are confident that he has no involvement with these blasts, told news agency IANS that he lives in Oslo with his wife. "We speak daily over the phone. However, for the last three days, we have had no contact with Jose. He is a straightforward person and we trust him fully," one of the relatives said.
{{/usCountry}}3- According to his LinkedIn profile, Jose also worked as digital customer support for Norwegian press group DN Media for almost five years, a fact confirmed by news agency AFP. DN Media, however, told a local news outlet that they have not been able to contact him.
4- In 2022, Jose founded Sofia-based company Norta Global Ltd, Bulgaria's corporate registry shows. His company declared revenue of 650,000 euros ($725,000) for consulting activities outside the European Union, AFP reported.
5- Jose also spoke to Reuters recently on the phone but declined to comment on the pagers and hung up when asked about the Bulgarian business. He has been unreachable ever since. Meanwhile, Bulgaria has probed the Jose's company's role in the supply of booby-trapped pagers, but has found no evidence that they were made or exported from the country.
Hezbollah pager blasts
For the unversed, last month, thousands of pagers, as well as walkie-talkies, used by Hezbollah operatives, detonated in Lebanon, killing at least 39 people and wounding thousands.
The attacks were widely believed to have been carried out by Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.