Why did Hezbollah not assist the Palestinians during the Gazan War of 2008?

Answer 1

Answer 1
Hezbollah are based in Lebanon, although in reality they are from Iran and are of Iranian nationality. They live and work in Lebanon. Hezbollah is a milita and despite what most people believe, Hezbollah does not have absolute power over governments. That is, even Hezbollah and other militas can only do what the governments will allow them to do.The current Gaza crisis now in January 2009 is very similar to the Lebanon invasion of 2006. And it has been reported that other governments have not done anything to stop the Israeli bombing of Gaza. Hamas is also not helping the people in Gaza either. Also Gaza cannot be reached easily by other countries, as to get there one has to go Israel, and this is difficult. As Israel does not allow a lot of people into the country, people with Syrian or Lebanese passports and with passports from most other countries Arab and others who are not at peace with Israel or have not signed a peace treaty. Egypt and Jordan have, but even citizens of those countries cannot get into Israel. Egypt has closed its borders with Israel and Israel won't let anybody in or out now. Hezbollah and other militas cannot get into Israel anymore than anybody else can. They and other militas have been forbidden by the Lebanese government from intervening in any way.The Iranian government, who originally created Hezbollah, fears that if Hezbollah or other militas get involved in any way with the currant crisis, Israel will invade Lebanon again or even invade Iran or other Arab countries. As mentioned Hezbollah cannot go against the government,and also the country, Israel and Gaza is closed to outsiders.There for entry into or out of by the militas is impossible. Other governments want to help, but Israel is closed even to other governments. The Israelis have killed and arrested innocent people trying to help aid workers and reporters. So Gaza is out of reach for everybody and people in Gaza are trapped there, as they cannot get out.

Answer 2
There are a few reasons why Hezbollah has not assisted the Palestinians during the Gazan War of 2008.

Lack of Access: Hezbollah has no naval craft and could not have made an amphibious landing in Gaza or Egypt to begin an offensive in Gaza against Israel.

Avoiding an Invasion of Lebanon: Hezbollah is aware from the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah War that Israel is more than willing to hunt them down if they violate the UN Ceasefire Zone along the Israeli-Lebanese border to attack from Lebanon. Hezbollah may have packaged the war as a victory against Israel, but it was not interested in losing militants for no real benefit.

Dead Body Propaganda: Hezbollah at its core is not interested in the Palestinians, but the eradication of Israel. Nothing makes Israel look worse than numerous civilian casualties in Palestine. As a result, they also choose to intentionally do nothing to prolong the fighting and increase the number of Palestinian deaths to humiliate Israel.

Iranian Prohibition: Iran is more than happy to maintain the current Iranian-Israeli Proxy Wars, but Hezbollah's direct involvement in the Gazan War could spark a rise from mere proxy wars to actual war. Iran wishes to avoid conflict until a time when it could assure victory and has ordered Hezbollah to stand down.

Notes on Answer 1
There are a few assertions that Answer 1 makes that are false:

• Hezbollah is under the yoke of the Lebanese government: This has been proven to not be the case. When Hezbollah did not win the Lebanese elections later in 2009, they launched a military attack on the capital until parts of their vision were realized for Lebanon. While Hezbollah may take Lebanese laws into account, it is not bound by them.
• Gaza can only be reached by Israel: While this is the current political reality, it is not the geographic reality. Egypt maintains a border crossing at Rafah. However, Egypt, both under Mubarak and later under Morsi has kept the border closed. Egyptians are just as afraid of the Gaza Hamastan as the Israelis. However, there are numerous smuggling tunnels between Egypt and Gaza, so Hezbollah militants could get into Gaza if they really wanted to go.
• Israel's borders were closed: Israel's borders with all of its neighbors (Jordan and Egypt) remained open throughout the conflict. There may have been increased border procedures since the country was at war. The only borders that were under strict scrutiny were those with the Gaza Strip. Getting into and out of Israel was not a problem. Hezbollah would have a problem entering Israel since Lebanese, Syrian, and Iranian citizens cannot enter Israel (as their countries reject its legitimacy).