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Hezbollah
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Hezbollah
[Arab.,=Party of God], Lebanese Shiite political party and militia. Founded in 1982 with Iranian help to oppose Israeli forces occupying S Lebanon, Hezbollah launched guerrilla attacks and suicide bombings against Israeli forces (which were a factor in Israel's withdrawal in 2000), and mounted terror attacks on other targets inside and outside Lebanon, include the 1983 bombing of a U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut. With strong support among religious, comparatively poor Shiites in S Lebanon the Biqa (Bekaa) valley, and Beirut's southern suburbs, and underwritten financially by Iran and individual Shiites, Hezbollah established a Shiite social-services network, including schools, hospitals, and clinics, and emerged as a major Lebanese political force; it has been led since 1992 by Hassan Nasrallah, a charismatic Shiite cleric. Supported militarily by Iran and Syria, Hezbollah's fighters used the years after Israel's withdrawal to retrain and rearm, acquiring large numbers of missiles and sophisticated equipment.
Politically part of the pro-Syrian camp in Lebanon, the party nonetheless became part of the largely anti-Syrian government established in 2005, and resisted the government's and the United Nations' call that it disarm. In 2006 a cross-border Hezbollah attack on Israeli soldiers, in which two Israelis were captured, sparked warfare (July–August) between Hezbollah militia and Israeli forces in which Hezbollah launched hundreds of missiles at Israel (many at civilian targets) and maintained a stubborn resistance against the Israeli forces that invaded S Lebanon. Hezbollah emerged from the fighting, which it regarded as a victory, determined to claim a larger political voice in the Lebanese government.
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Hezbollah
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| Hezbollah | |
|---|---|
 (In detail) |
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| Leader | Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah |
| Founded | 1982 - 1985 (officially) |
| Religion | Shi'a Islam |
| Political ideology | Islamism, Nationalism |
| Nationality | Lebanese |
| Website | Varies. See List of official sites. |
Hezbollah[1] (Arabic: حزب الله ḥizbu-llāh, [2] literally "party of God") is a Shi'a Islamic political and paramilitary organization based in Lebanon. It follows an Islamist Shi'a ideology developed by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran.[3][4][5] [6] [7]
Hezbollah first emerged during the Lebanese Civil War as a militia of Shia followers of the Ayatollah Khomeini, trained, organized and funded by a contingent of Iranian Revolutionary Guards.[8] Hezbollah's three main goals are to: Eradicate what it views as Western colonialism in Lebanon, bring to justice of those who committed atrocities during the war (specifically the Phalangists), and establish an Islamic government in Lebanon.[9] Hezbollah has realized that the goal of transforming Lebanon into an Islamic state is not practical at this time and has temporarily abandoned it.[8]
Six countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, officially list Hezbollah or its external security arm as a terrorist organization, though its designation as such is not unanimous among world powers (perhaps most notably, the European Union[10]). Most in the Arab and Muslim worlds regard Hezbollah as a legitimate resistance movement.[3]
Hezbollah has popular support in Shi'a Lebanese society[11] and has mobilized demonstrations of hundreds of thousands.[12][13][14] In addition Hezbollah receives arms, training, and financial support from Iran[15][16] and has "operated with Syria's blessing" since the end of the Civil War.[17][18] Hezbollah, which started only with a militia, has grown to an organization which has seats in the Lebanese government, a radio and a satellite television station, and programs for social development.[19] Since 1992 the organization has been headed by Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, its Secretary-General.
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Background
Hezbollah is one of two major political parties that represent the Shiites in Lebanon, Lebanon's largest religious group. It holds 14 of the 128 seats in Lebanon's Parliament, and is a member of the Resistance and Development Bloc.
Hezbollah organizes an extensive social development program and runs hospitals, news services, and educational facilities.[15] Its Reconstruction Campaign ('Jihad Al Binna') is responsible for numerous economic and infrastructure development projects in Lebanon.[20]
Ending Israel's occupation of Southern Lebanon was the primary focus of Hezbollah's early activities.[17] Israel had become militarily involved in Lebanon in combat with the Palestine Liberation Organization which moved into Southern Lebanon after being ousted from Jordan. The PLO was attacking Israel from Southern Lebanon in the lead up to the 1982 Lebanon War, and Israel had invaded and occupied Southern Lebanon and besieged Beirut.
Then Hezbollah tried to expel Israel from Lebanon. At the beginning it had used suicide attacks against the IDF and also against Jewish and Israeli targets outside of Lebanon.[21] Hezbollah is reputed to have been among the first Islamic resistance groups to use tactical suicide bombing, assassination and capturing against foreign soldiers in the Middle East.[8][17] But gradually Hezbollah turned into paramilitary organization and used missiles, Katyusha and other type of rocket launchers and detonations of explosive charges[4][22][23] instead of capturings,[24][25][26] murders,[25] hijackings,[27] and bombings.[27][28][29] Hezbollah has been subject to assassination and abduction by Israel as well.[27] Hezbollah's violent acts are characterized by some countries as terrorist attacks; while others regard them as a resistance movement engaged in defensive Jihad."[30][31] Human rights organizations Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch accused Hezbollah of committing war crimes against Israeli civilians.[32]
Supporters of Hezbollah justify Hezbollah's attacks against Israel for several reasons. Firstly, Hezbollah justifies its operations against Israel as reciprocal to Israeli operations against Lebanese civilians and retaliation for Israel's occupation of Lebanese territory.[33][34][35] Many of these attacks took place while Israel occupied the southern part of Lebanon and held it as a security zone in spite of United Nations Security Council Resolution 425. Although Israel withdrew from Lebanon in 2000, and their complete withdrawal was verified by the United Nations, Lebanon now considers the Shebaa farms, a 10 sq. mile piece of land captured by Israel from Syria in the 1967 war and considered by the UN to be disputed territory between Syria and Israel, to be Lebanese territory. Additionally, Hezbollah has identified three Lebanese prisoners held in Israeli jails it wants released.[36] Finally, Hezbollah and some of the Muslim world consider Israel an illegitimate state. For these reasons, many in the Arab world consider acts performed by Hezbollah against Israel to be justified as acts of defensive Jihad.[37][27] Although some Arab states (Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia) have condemned Hezbollah's actions, saying that "the Arabs and Muslims can't afford to allow an irresponsible and adventurous organization like Hezbollah to drag the region to war" and calling it "dangerous adventurism,"[38] throughout most of much of Lebanese society and the Arab and Muslim world Hezbollah is regarded as a legitimate resistance movement with an emphasis on "calls for the destruction of Israel."[39] Three-quarters of Lebanese Christians identified Hezbollah as a legitimate group in challenging Israeli aggression.[40][41]
In contrast, the United States, Israel and four other countries consider Hezbollah wholly or partly a terrorist organization. The European Union does not list Hezbollah as a "terrorist organization",[42] but does list Imad Mugniyah, a senior member and founder of Hezbollah as a terrorist.[43]
Ideology
On February 16, 1985 Sheik Ibrahim al-Amin issued Hezbollah's manifesto. According to this "Hizballah Program, Open Letter," the three objectives of the organization were:[9]
- To expel Americans, the French and their allies definitely from Lebanon, putting an end to any colonialist entity on our land.
- To submit the phalanges to a just power and bring them all to justice for the crimes they have perpetrated against Muslims and Christians.
- To permit all the sons of our people to determine their future and to choose in all the liberty the form of government they desire. We call upon all of them to pick the option of Islamic government which alone is capable of guaranteeing justice and liberty for all. Only an Islamic regime can stop any future tentative attempts of imperialistic infiltration onto our country.
It listed the Ayatollah Khomeini as the leader whose "orders we obey;" called on Christians to "open your hearts to our call" and "embrace Islam" and noted that "Allah has ... made it intolerable for Muslims to particuate in ... a regime which is not predicated upon ... the Sharia"; explained that Israel is "the vanguard of the United States in our Islamic world." [9]
More broadly, current leader Sheikh Nasserallah has described Hizb'allah's ideology as having "two main axis: firstly, a belief in the rule by the just jurisconsult and adherence to Khomeini's leadership; and secondly, the continued need to struggle against the Israeli enemy." [44]
Hezbollah's Shi'a Islamic doctrine
Hezbollah's original 1985 manifesto reads:
We are the sons of the ummah (Muslim community) - the party of God (Hizb Allah) the vanguard of which was made victorious by God in Iran. There the vanguard succeeded to lay down the bases of a Muslim state which plays a central role in the world. We obey the orders of one leader, wise and just, that of our tutor and faqih (jurist) who fulfills all the necessary conditions: Ruhollah Musawi Khomeini....We are an umma linked to the Muslims of the whole world by the solid doctrinal and religious connection of Islam, whose message God wanted to be fulfilled by the Seal of the Prophets, i.e., Muhammad. Our behavior is dictated to us by legal principles laid down by the light of an overall political conception defined by the leading jurist....As for our culture, it is based on the Holy Koran, the Sunna and the legal rulings of the faqih who is our source of imitation.[9]
Hezbollah was largely formed with the aid of the Ayatollah Khomeini's followers in the early eighties in order to spread Islamic revolution[45] and follows a distinct version of Islamic Shi'a ideology (“Willayat Al-Faqih”) developed by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, leader of the Islamic Revolution of Iran.[4][5][3][6][7]
Although Hezbollah originally aimed to transform Lebanon into an Islamic republic, Hezbollah's spiritual guide Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah claims this goal has been abandoned.[3][17] Doubts, however, remain.[46][18][47]Nasrallah has been quoted as saying, "We believe the requirement for an Islamic state is to have an overwhelming popular desire, and we're not talking about fifty percent plus one, but a large majority."[8] Although Hezbollah believes in one-person-one-vote system and disagree with the multi-confessional quotas under the Ta'if Accord, it does not intend to force a one-person-one-vote system onto the country’s Christians.[48]
Position on armed struggle
Hezbollah's 1985 founding Manifesto reads:
... our military apparatus is not separate from our overall social fabric. Each of us is a fighting soldier. ... each of us takes up his assignment in the fight in accordance with the injunctions of the Law, and ... under the tutelage of the Commanding Jurist. ... This is why whatever touches or strikes the Muslims in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Philippines and elsewhere reverberates throughout the whole Muslim umma of which we are an integral part.[9]
This principle, that Islamic law demands all Muslims should defend Islamic lands through Defensive Jihad and fight non-Muslims to withdraw from them.[49]
Position on Israel
From the inception of Hezbollah to the present[9][8][50][51][52] the elimination of the State of Israel has been one of Hezbollah's primary goals. Its 1985 manifesto reportedly states "our struggle will end only when this entity [Israel] is obliterated. We recognize no treaty with it, no ceasefire, and no peace agreements ..."[9][53] Secretary-General Nasrallah has stated that "Israel is an illegal usurper entity, which is based on falsehood, massacres, and illusions,"[37] and considers that the elimination of Israel will bring peace in the Middle East: "There is no solution to the conflict in this region except with the disappearance of Israel."[54][50] In an interview with the Washington Post, Nasrallah said "I am against any reconciliation with Israel. I do not even recognize the presence of a state that is called 'Israel.' I consider its presence both unjust and unlawful. That is why if Lebanon concludes a peace agreement with Israel and brings that accord to the Parliament our deputies will reject it; Hezbollah refuses any conciliation with Israel in principle...When a peace agreement is concluded between the Lebanese government and Israel, we would surely disagree with the Lebanese government about that, but we would not make any turmoil out of it."[55]
In a 1999 interview, Nasrallah outlined the group’s three "minimal demand[s]: an [Israeli] withdrawal from South Lebanon and the Western Bqa’ Valley, a withdrawal from the Golan, and the return of the Palestinian refugees.”[37] An additional objective is the freeing of prisoners held in Israeli jails.[56][57][3] Hezbollah's desire for Israeli prisoners that could be exchanged with Israel led to its abduction of Israeli soldiers which triggered the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict.[58]
Israel's occupation of the Shebaa Farms, along with the presence of Lebanese prisoners in Israeli jails, is often cited as justification – and invoked as a pretext, acccording to many[59][60][61] – for Hezbollah's continued hostilities against Israel even after Israel's verified withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000. Hezbollah's spokesperson Hassan Ezzedin, however, had this to say about an Israeli withdrawal from Sheba Farms: "If they go from Shebaa, we won't stop fighting them. ... Our goal is to liberate the 1948 borders of Palestine, ... The Jews who survive this war of liberation can go back to Germany or wherever they came from. However, that the Jews who lived in Palestine before 1948 will be 'allowed to live as a minority and they will be cared for by the Muslim majority."[62]
In a 2003 interview, Nasrallah has answered questions concerning the establishment of a Palestinian state established alongside an Israeli state stating "that he would not sabotage what is finally a 'Palestinian matter.' But until such a settlement is reached, he will, he said, continue to encourage Palestinian suicide bombers."[63] Similarly, in 2004, when asked whether he was prepared to live with a two-state settlement between Israel and Palestine, Nasrallah said he wouldn't sabotage what is a Palestinian matter.[8] He also said that outside of Lebanon, Hezbollah will act only in a defensive manner towards Israeli forces, and that Hezbollah's missiles were acquired to deter attacks on Lebanon.[64]
Position on the United States
During the years prior to its official founding, Hezbollah was held responsible or partially responsible for several attacks on Western (mostly American) targets and it has been blamed for killing many Americans.[65] Hezbollah has denied involvement in the attacks but its manifesto does claim
the whole world knows that whoever wishes to oppose the US, that arrogant superpower, cannot indulge in marginal acts which may make deviate from its major objective. We combat abomination and we shall tear out its very roots, its primary roots, which are the US.[9]
Hezbollah leader Fadlallah, has told interviewer
We believe there is no difference between the United States and Israel; the latter is a mere extension of the former. The United States is ready to fight the whole world to defend Israel's existence and security. The two countries are working in complete harmony, and the United States is certainly not inclined to exert pressure on Israel. [66]
On its Al-Manar Television network, which is viewed by "an estimated 10-15 million people a day across the world," the United States is portrayed by an animated image of "the Statue of Liberty as a ghoul, her gown dripping blood, a knife instead of a torch in her raised hand. In Arabic the video ... concludes with the words: 'America owes blood to all of humanity.'"[67]
Position on Jews and Judaism
Hezbollah has declared that it distinguishes between Zionism and Judaism. Hezbollah MP Abdallah Qussayr stated that "Hezbollah has never been against religions. Hezbollah supports all religions, it supports interfaith dialogue, and it has no problem with any religion. Hezbollah considers Zionism to be the enemy, not the Jews as a people or a religion."[68] Hezbollah's official web site marks a distinction between "Zionist ideology" and Judaism. It likens Zionism to "the concept of creating 'Israel' by the use of force and violence, by stealing the Arabs’ lands and killing Palestinians."[69]
Others have attributed anti-Jewish statements to Hassan Nasrallah. Nasrallah was quoted as saying "if [Jews] all gather in Israel, it will save us the trouble of going after them worldwide."[70][71] However, Charles Glass believes that the quotation was likely a fabrication, citing other published accounts of the speech that had no reference to the anti-semitic comment, and statements by the Star's editors that questioned both the translation and the "agenda of the translator."[72] Also Wafa Hoteit, Hezbollah's spokeswoman, has denied that Nasrallah ever made the statement, and that the paper's managing editor has since called into question the accuracy of the quotation, as well as the honesty of the reporter.[73]
Amal Saad-Ghorayeb, a Lebanese author and expert on Hezbollah, quoted Hassan Nasrallah as saying, "If we searched the entire world for a person more cowardly, despicable, weak and feeble in psyche, mind, ideology and religion, we would not find anyone like the Jew."[62] Regarding the official public stance of Hezbollah as a whole, she argues that while Hezbollah, "tries to mask its anti-Judaism for public-relations reasons... a study of its language, spoken and written, reveals an underlying truth." In her book, Hezbollah: Politics & Religion, she states that Hezbollah "believes that Jews, by the nature of Judaism, possess fatal character flaws," and that "Hezbollah's Quranic reading of Jewish history has led its leaders to believe that Jewish theology is evil."[62]
In 2004 the Hezbollah-owned television station Al-Manar was banned in France on the grounds that it was inciting racial hatred. The court cited a 23 November 2004 broadcast in which a speaker accused Israel of deliberately disseminating AIDS in Arab nations.[74]
Women’s rights
In keeping with Lebanon’s generally secular and egalitarian culture, Hezbollah recognizes and promotes women’s rights (in the mold of the Western liberal tradition) somewhat more strongly than do other groups associated with Islamic jihad or Iran.[75]
- See also: Women in Muslim societies
Organization
The nature of Hezbollah's organization is disputed. Many Hezbollah leaders have maintained that the movement was `not an organisation, for its members carry no cards and bear no specific responsibilities,` [76] and that the movement does not have "a clearly defined organisational structure."
However Hezbollah scholar Magnus Ranstorp reports that Hezbollah does indeed have a formal governing structure and in keeping with the principle of velayat-e faqih, it "concentrate[s] ... all authority and powers" in its religious leaders, whose decisions then "flow from the ulama down the entire community."
The supreme decision-making bodies of the Hezbollah were divided between the Majlis al-Shura (Consultative Assembly) which was headed by 12 senior clerical members with responsibility for tactical decisions and supervision of overall Hizballah activity throughout Lebanon, and the Majlis al-Shura al-Karar (the Deciding Assembly), headed by Sheikh Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah and composed of eleven other clerics with responsibility for all strategic matters. Within the Majlis al-Shura, there existed seven specialized committees dealing with ideological , financial, military and political, judicial, informational and social affairs. In turn, the Majlis al-Shura and these seven committees were replicated in each of Hizballah's three main operational areas (the Beqaa, Beirut, and the South). [77]
Since the Supreme Leader of Iran is the ultimate clerical authority, Hezbollah's leaders have appealed to him "for guidance and directives in cases when Hezbollah's collective leadership [was] too divided over issues and fail[ed] to reach a consensus." After the death of Iran's first Supreme Leader, Khomeini, Hezbollah's governing bodies developed a more "independent role" and appealed to Iran less often. [78]
Political activities
Hezbollah, along with the Amal Movement, represents most of the Shi'a community in Lebanon.[79] However, unlike Amal, Hezbollah has not disarmed. Hezbollah participates in the Parliament of Lebanon. In the general election of 2005, it won 10.9% of parliamentary seats. The Resistance and Development Bloc, of which Hezbollah is a member, won all 23 seats in Southern Lebanon, and in total 35 seats or 27.3% of parliamentary seats natonwide.[80] When municipal elections were held in Spring, 2004, Hezbollah won control of 21% of the municipalities.[81]
Although Hezbollah had joined the new government in 2005, it remained staunchly opposed to the March 14 Alliance.[82] In November 2006, Hezbollah, the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), and the Amal Movement jointly demanded the establishment of a "national unity government",[83][84] in which they demanded early elections and one third of the Cabinet seats; effectively veto power.[85][86] When negotiations with the ruling coalition failed, five Cabinet Ministers from Hezbollah and Amal resigned their positions. On December 1, 2006, these groups began the 2006–present Lebanese revolt, an ongoing series of protests and sit-ins in opposition to the government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.
Lebanese government positions on Hezbollah's disarmament
After approval of the U.N. Resolution 1559 that requires Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias to disband and disarm, Lebanese prime minister, Najib Mikati, declared on May 7, 2005 that "Our terminology -- Hezbollah -- is not a militia. It's a resistance."[87] On August 5, 2006 the Prime Minister of Lebanon, Fouad Siniora, said that "the continued presence of Israeli occupation of Lebanese lands in the Shebaa Farms region is what contributes to the presence of Hezbollah weapons. The international community must help us in (getting) an Israeli withdrawal from Shebaa Farms so we can solve the problem of Hezbollah's arms".[88]
Military activities
Hezbollah has a military branch known as Al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya ("The Islamic Resistance") and is the possible sponsor of a number of lesser-known militant groups, some of which may be little more than fronts for Hezbollah itself, including the Organization of the Oppressed, the Revolutionary Justice Organization, the Organization of Right Against Wrong, and Followers of the Prophet Muhammad.[89][4][90]
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1559 called for the disarmament of militia[91] with the Taif agreement at the end of the Lebanese civil war. Hezbollah denounced and protested against the resolution.[17][92] The 2006 military conflict with Israel has increased the controversy. Failure to disarm remains a violation of the resolution and agreement,[93] Most of the Shia consider Hezbollah's weaponry a necessary and justified element of resistance while the less than half of the other religious communities support the idea that Hezbollah should keep its weapons after 2006 Lebanon war.[94]
Accusations of Bombings, terrorism and kidnappings
Hezbollah has been accused by some countries for being responsible for a number of attacks and kidnappings carried out since its founding in the early 1980s.[95][96][97] These include:
- April 1983 U.S. Embassy bombing [98]
- 1983 Beirut barracks bombing,[95][97], alleged by the US to be Hezbollah, elsewhere opinion is not unanimous[98]
- kidnappings of western, especially American, targets in the 80's,[97], mostly alleged by the US,Israel and Canada, while others allege other groups responsible
- the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 in 1985,[95] by a group with alleged links to Hezbollah
- According to researcher Robert A. Pape, "from 1982 to 1986, Hezbollah conducted 36 suicide terrorist attacks involving a total of 41 attackers against American, French, and Israeli political and military targets in Lebanon ... Altogether, these attacks killed 659 people, most of who were off-duty soldiers in no position to defend themselves, such as the 241 U.S. Marine who were killed as they slept." [99]
- the 1992 Israeli Embassy attack in Buenos Aires, Argentina,[95][97]
- the 1994 AMIA bombing of a Jewish cultural centre, also in Argentina,[95]
These accusations are denied by Hezbollah.[100][101][102]
Attacks on Israel
Hezbollah is responsible for many attacks on Israel. Some recent examples are:
- the 2001 abduction and murder of 3 Israeli soldiers. The bodies of which were exchanged with Lebanese captives in 2004.
- the "Zar'it-Shtula incident" (the abduction of 2 Israeli soldiers, both of which have yet to be returned) which sparked the 2006 Lebanon War.
- thousands of Katyusha rocket attacks on Israeli civilian towns and cities in Northern Israel - especially during the 2006 Lebanon War.[96]
Armed strength
- See also: Hezbollah rocket force
It has been estimated by Mustafa Alani, security director at the Dubai-based Gulf Research Centre, that Hezbollah military force is made up of about 1,000 full-time Hezbollah members, along with a further 6,000-10,000 volunteers.[103]
Hezbollah possesses the Katyusha-122 rocket, which has a range of 29 kilometres (18 miles) and carries a 15 kilo (33 pound) warhead. Hezbollah also possesses about 100 long-range missiles. They include the Iranian-made Fajr-3 and Fajr-5, the latter with a range of 75 kilometres, enabling it to strike the Israeli port of Haifa, and the Zelzal-1 with an estimated 150-kilometre range, which can reach Tel Aviv. Fajr-3 missiles have a range of 40 kilometres, and a 45 kilo warhead, and Fajr-5 missiles, which extend to 72 kilometres, also hold 45 kilo warheads.[103]
According to various reports, Hezbollah is armed with some anti-tank guided missiles. Namely the Russian-made AT-3 Sagger, AT-4 Spigot, AT-5 Spandrel, AT-13 Saxhorn-2 'Metis-M', АТ-14 Spriggan 'Kornet'; Iranian-made Ra'ad (version of AT-3 Sagger), Towsan (version of AT-5 Spandrel), Toophan (version of BGM-71 TOW); and European-made MILAN missiles. These weapons have been used against IDF soldiers, causing much of the deaths during the 2006 Lebanon War.[104]
For air defence, Hezbollah possesses some anti-aircraft weapons, including the ZU-23 artillery and man-portable shoulder-fired SA-7 and SA-18 surface-to-air missile (SAM).[105] One of the most effective weapons deployed by Hezbollah has been the C-802 anti-ship missile.[106]
During the 2006 Lebanon War, Hezbollah fired 3,970 rockets into Northern Israel in the course of a month, killing 43 Israeli civilians.[107] Hezbollah officials have stated that the group has recovered fully from the previous war; during the Divine Victory rally, held shortly after the cease-fire, Hezbollah's Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah declared that the group has "more than 20,000 rockets available".[108] He also spoke in retrospect of the war, saying "Tel Aviv or elsewhere, we were certain that we could reach any corner or spot in occupied Palestine and now we are certain that we can reach them."[109] Nasrallah has also implied that Hezbollah's rocket force became stronger in the months following the 2006 Lebanon War than it had been during the war itself.[110]
Intelligence capabilities
According to Israeli and American sources, Hezbollah has three units charged with intelligence operations.
One unit is responsible for intelligence activities against Israel, primarily by recruiting and running agents in order to gather information about Israeli military bases and other potential targets and is also known to conduct SIGINT operations against IDF communications.[111]
According to Michael Eisenstadt, of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Hezbollah also has a unit called Unit 1800 which aids Palestinians engaged in their operations, by providing funding, direction, weapons, and bomb-building instructions.[112]
Targeting policy
Hezbollah has not been involved in any suicide bombing since Israel withdrew from Lebanon.[113][114] After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Hezbollah condemned Al Qaeda for targeting the civilian World Trade Center, but remained silent on the attack on the The Pentagon, neither favoring nor opposing the act.[115][8] Hezbollah also denounced the Armed Islamic Group massacres in Algeria, Al-Gama’a al-Islamiyya attacks on tourists in Egypt,[116] and the murder of Nick Berg.[117] In a 2006 interview with the Washington Post, Nasrallah condemned violence against American civilians.[115]
Although Hezbollah has denounced certain attacks on Western civilians, some people accuse the organisation of the bombing of an Argentine synagogue in 1994. Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman, Marcelo Martinez Burgos, and their "staff of some 45 people"[118] alleged Hezbollah and their contacts in Iran were responsible for the 1994 bombing of a Jewish cultural center in Argentina, in which "[e]ighty-five people were killed and more than 200 others injured."[119] In June 2002, shortly after the Israeli government launched Operation Defensive Shield, Nasrallah gave a speech in which he defended and praised suicide bombings of Israeli targets by members of Palestinian groups for "creating a deterrence and equalizing fear." Nasrallah stated that "in occupied Palestine there is no difference between a soldier and a civilian, for they are all invaders, occupiers and usurpers of the land."[120]
In addition, Hezbollah's television station Al-Manar airs programming designed to inspire suicide attacks in Gaza, the West Bank and Iraq.[62][121][122]
Media operations
Hezbollah operates a satellite television station, Al-Manar TV ("the Lighthouse"), a radio station al-Nour ("the Light"), and a monthly magazine Kabdat Alla ("The Fist of God"). Al-Manar broadcasts from Beirut, Lebanon.[123] The station was launched by Hezbollah in 1991[124] with the help of Iranian funds.[125] Al-Manar, self-proclaimed "Station of the Resistance" (qanat al-muqawama), is a key player in what Hezbollah calls its "psychological warfare against the Zionist enemy"[126][125] and an integral part of Hezbollah's plan to spread its message to the entire Arab world.[125]
Al-Manar's transmission in France is prohibited due to promotion of Holocaust denial, a criminal offense in France.[127][128][129] The United States also lists Al-Manar television network as a terrorist organization.[130]
Materials aimed at instilling principles of nationalism and Islam in children are an aspect of Hezbollah's media operations.[131] The Hezbollah Central Internet Bureau released a video game in 2003 entitled Special Force in which players conduct war on Israeli invaders, wherein the winner becomes a national hero on Earth and a martyr in Heaven.[132]
Social services
Hezbollah also organizes extensive social development programs, running hospitals, news services, and educational facilities. Social services have a central role in the party's programs. Most experts believe that Hezbollah's social and health programmes are worth hundreds of millions of dollars annually.[15]
It has established some institutions which are Emdad committee for Islamic Charity,[133] Hizbollah Central Press Office, Al Jarha Association,[134] and Jehad Al Benaa Developmental Association.[135] Its Reconstruction Campaign ('Jihad al-Binna') is responsible for numerous economic and infrastructure development projects in Lebanon.[136] Hezbollah has set up a Martyr's Institute(Al-Shahid Social Association), which guarantees to provide for the living and education expenses for the families of fighters who die in battle.[137] In March 2006 an IRIN news report of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs noted: "Hezbollah not only has armed and political wings - it also boasts an extensive social development programme. Hezbollah currently operates at least four hospitals, 12 clinics, 12 schools and two agricultural centres that provide farmers with technical assistance and training. It also has an environmental department and an extensive social assistance programme. Medical care is also cheaper than in most of the country's private hospitals and free for Hezbollah members".[15]
According to CNN: "Hezbollah did everything that a government should do, from collecting the garbage to running hospitals and repairing schools."[138] In July 2006, during the war with Israel, when there was no running water in Beirut, Hezbollah was arranging supplies around the city. "People here [in South Beirut] see Hezbollah as a political movement and a social service provider as much as it is a militia, in this traditionally poor and dispossessed Shiite community."[138] Also after the war it competes with the Lebanon government to reconstruct destroyed area. According to analysts like American University Professor Judith Swain Harik, Jihad al-Binaa has won the initial battle of hearts and minds in large part because they are the most experienced in the reconstruction field in Lebanon.[139]
Funding
Hezbollah's financial support is a matter of controversy. Critics argue it is, or has been, massively supported with tens of millions of dollars annually from the Islamic Republic of Iran.[62] Hezbollah maintains the main source of its income comes from donations by Muslims.[140]
Lebanese Shi’ites often make zakat contributions directly after prayers, and an additional donation in a Hezbollah donation box. Hezbollah also receives financial and political assistance, as well as weapons and training, from the Islamic Republic of Iran.[15][137][16] The US estimates that Iran was giving Hezbollah about $60-$100 million per year in financial assistance but that assistance declined as other funding was secured, primarily from South America.[141]
Hezbollah has relied extensively on funding from the Shi'ite Lebanese Diaspora in West Africa, the United States and, most importantly, the Triple Frontier, or tri-border area, along the junction of Paraguay, Argentina, and Brazil.[142] U.S. law enforcement officials charged that smugglers of illegal cigarettes in the United States were funneling millions of dollars to Hezbollah.[143]
Foreign relations
Hezbollah has close relations with Iran.[144] It also
has ties with the Alawite leadership in Syria, specifically with President Hafez al-Assad (until his death in 2000) and his son and successor Bashar al-Assad.[145] Although
Hezbollah and Hamas are not organizationally linked, Hezbollah provides military training as well
as financial and moral support to the Palestinian group.[146] Furthermore, Hezbollah is a strong supporter of the ongoing Al-Aqsa Intifada. [8] The cooperation or any relationship between
Hezbollah and al-Qaeda has been questioned.[147] Hezbollah's leaders deny links to al-Qaeda, present or past.[147][148] Also some al-Qaeda leaders like Abu Musab al-Zarqawi[149]
and Wahhabi clerics consider Hezbollah to be apostate.[150][151] But United States intelligence officials speculate there has been contact between Hezbollah and low-level al-Qaeda figures who fled Afghanistan for Lebanon.[147][152][153]
Outside views of Hezbollah
Public opinion
In the majority of the Arab world, Hezbollah is seen as a legitimate resistance organization that has defended its land against the Israeli occupying force, and consistently stood up to the Israeli army.[8]
According to a poll released by the "Beirut Center for Research and Information" on 26 July during 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict, 87 percent of Lebanese support Hezbollah's fight with Israel, a rise of 29 percent on a similar poll conducted in February. More striking, however, is the level of support for Hezbollah's resistance from non-Shiite communities. Eighty percent of Christians polled supported Hezbollah along with 80 percent of Druze and 89 percent of Sunnis.[154][155]
In a poll of Lebanese adults taken in 2004, 6% of respondents gave unqualified support to the statement "Hezbollah should be disarmed". 41% reported unqualified disagreement.[156]
A poll of Palestinians taken in the Gaza Strip indicated that 79.6% had "a very good view" of Hezbollah.[157]
Polls of Jordanian adults in December, 2005 and June, 2006, showed that 63.9% and 63.3%, respectively, considered Hezbollah to be a legitimate resistance organization.[158] In the December, 2005, poll only 6% of Jordanian adults considered Hezbollah to be terrorist.[159]
A poll in August 2006 by ABC News and the Washington Post found that 68% of the 1,002 Americans polled blamed Hezbollah, at least in part, for the civilian casualties in Lebanon during the 2006 Lebanon War, compared to 31% who blamed Israel to some degree.[160] Another August 2006 poll by CNN shows that 69% of the 1,047 Americans polled believe that Hezbollah is unfriendly towards, or an enemy of, the United States.[160] A July 2006 USA Today/Gallup poll found that 83% of the 1,005 Americans polled blamed Hezbollah, at least in part, for the 2006 Lebanon War, compared to 66% who blamed Israel to some degree. Additionally, 76% disapproved of the military action Hezbollah took in Israel, compared to 38% who disapproved of Israel's military action in Lebanon.[160]
Designation as a terrorist organization
Governments disagree on Hezbollah’s status as a legitimate political entity, a terrorist group, or both. Throughout most of the Arab and Muslim worlds, Hezbollah is highly regarded as a legitimate resistance movement.[3]
The countries below have officially listed Hezbollah in at least some part as a terrorist organization.
 Australia |
The Hezbollah External Security Organization | [161] |
 Canada |
The entire organization Hezbollah | [162] |
 Israel |
The entire organization Hezbollah | [163][164] |
 Netherlands |
The entire organization Hezbollah | [165][166] |
 United Kingdom |
The Hezbollah External Security Organization | [167] |
 United States |