On Tuesday, Israel executed one of the most impressive targeted strikes in human history. Israel remotely triggered pagers used by Hezbollah to explode in the middle of the day, injuring thousands of terrorists and high-level operatives across the Middle East. It targeted terrorists to a person in a way no other country has ever done - it's also a sign for the United States to lock down its own supply lines.

Hezbollah feared that Israel was spying on its use of smartphones and other devices. To counter this, it switched from new technology to the pinnacle of 1990s tech: the beeper or pager.

Israel knew this was happening. Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy, started purchasing beepers from a company named Gold Apollo in Taiwan. According to The New York Times, "Over 3,000 pagers were ordered from the Gold Apollo company in Taiwan, said several of the officials. Hezbollah distributed the pagers to their members throughout Lebanon, with some reaching Hezbollah allies in Iran and Syria."

Somehow, in the middle of that shipment, Israel managed to modify the beepers to include a small explosive material near the battery. According to the Times, "The explosive material, as little as one to two ounces, was implanted next to the battery in each pager, two of the officials said. A switch was also embedded that could be triggered remotely to detonate the explosives."

After that, Israel sent a message that triggered the device to go off. If you had one of those beepers on your person, you got them from Hezbollah. The Wall Street Journal reported, "Many of the affected pagers were from a new shipment that the group received in recent days, people familiar with the matter said. A Hezbollah official said many fighters had such devices, adding that some people felt the pagers heat up and disposed of them before they burst."

Hezbollah overestimated how many disposed of the pagers. According to reports, nine people are dead, and nearly 3,000 people were injured from the explosive pagers. Videos flooded social media of Hezbollah terrorists in ordinary places suddenly collapsing after an explosion near their groin goes off.

In terms of watching a terrorist group get dropped to its knees in a very unexpected manner, the videos are borderline comedy. These terrorists, who claim to be brutal warriors, are left a babbling, crying mess on the ground by 1990s technology.

The attack reveals yet again how weak Hezbollah, Iran, and the rest of these murderous terrorists are in the face of Israel and the West. Israel previously set off bombs in Iran's capital city, sent drone attacks into Iran without its knowledge, and now crippled a central communication method of Hezbollah and Iran.

However, the other crucial fact at play here is how vital supply chains are to the security of any country or organization. In fact, being able to mess with the supply chain of a terrorist organization or a country allows you to wield immense power over them. In this case, Israel turned Hezbollah's communication equipment into personal bombs - like getting a personal pan pizza made of C4.

Hezbollah is left scrambling for any modern means of communicating now, while Israel plots whether to expand its military operations against another Iranian proxy. It's a decisive upper hand. 

The United States has similar concerns with China. In the event of any conflict with China, they control things like rare earth minerals, technology, and more. The way Israel targeted Hezbollah's beepers, China could easily target the United States, especially as more and more products are connected to the internet. 

The reverse is also true; TSMC and ASML have said they have ways of remotely disabling their chip-making equipment in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. The capacity to strike an opponent on their soil without ever setting foot there is a critical ability. 

In the United States, we already see signs of this from Russia and China. Local cities are starting to report cyberattacks on things like water and other utilities. What happens if a rogue country decides to shut off power in a critical town? Some government services may have backups, but a typical American will be left stranded. 

The United States has a responsibility to lock down our supply chains, especially given the amount of trade between the United States and China. This point is true even if the United States shifts manufacturing to other countries like Mexico or India. The ability to build and maintain secure trade lines with protected products is vital to a country's long-term health. 

If you don't believe me, go watch some videos of Hezbollah terrorists writhing in pain across the Middle East. It's extremely funny and a reminder of what the United States needs to work on security-wise.