Hezbollah: Difference between revisions

| leader3_name = [[Hashem Safieddine]]{{MIA|October 2024 Dahieh airstrike}}''Vacant''

[[Abbas al-Musawi]]{{Assassinated|Assassination of Abbas al-Musawi}}<br>[[Hassan Nasrallah]]{{Assassinated|Assassination2024 ofHezbollah Hassanheadquarters Nasrallahstrike}}

| [[Anti-Western sentiment|Anti-West]]{{refn|name=Anti-West|<ref name="Dalacoura 2012"/><ref>{{cite book |last=Levitt |first=Matthew |author-link=Matthew Levitt |year=2013 |title=Hezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon's Party of God |page=356 |publisher=Hurst Publishers |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yTJeAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA356 |quote=Hezbollah's anti-Western militancy began with attacks against Western targets in Lebanon, then expanded to attacks abroad intended to exact revenge for actions threatening its or Iran's interests, or to press foreign governments to release captured operatives. |isbn=978-1-84904-333-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n9QycqW1qogC&pg=PA267 |title=An International History of Terrorism: Western and Non-Western Experiences |page=267 |quote=Based upon these beliefs, Hezbollah became vehemently anti-West and anti-Israel. |isbn=978-0-415-63540-0 |last1=Hanhimäki |first1=Jussi M. |last2=Blumenau |first2=Bernhard |year=2013|publisher=Routledge }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-MkxxSUSTuEC&pg=PT421 |title=Criminology: Theories, Patterns & Typology |page=396 |quote=Hezbollah is anti-West and anti-Israel and has engaged in a series of terrorist actions including kidnappings, car bombings, and airline hijackings. |isbn=978-1-133-04964-7 |last1=Siegel |first1=Larry J. |year= 2012|publisher=Cengage Learning }}</ref><ref name="bbc-hi-me"/>}}

Hezbollah was founded in 1982 by Lebanese clerics in response to the [[1982 Lebanon War|Israeli invasion of Lebanon]].<ref name="bbc-hi-me2">{{cite news |date=21 May 2008 |title=Who Are Hezbollah? |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4314423.stm |access-date=15 August 2008 |website=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> Inspired by the [[Iranian Revolution]] of 1979 and Ayatollah [[Ruhollah Khomeini]]'s model of Islamic governance, Hezbollah established strong ties with Iran. The group was initially supported by 1,500 [[Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps]] (IRGC) instructors, who helped unify various Lebanese Shia factions under Hezbollah's leadership.<ref name="nybooks2">{{cite journal |author=Adam Shatz |date=29 April 2004 |title=In Search of Hezbollah |url=http://www.nybooks.com/articles/17060 |journal=[[The New York Review of Books]] |volume=51 |issue=7 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060822195222/http://www.nybooks.com/articles/17060 |archive-date=22 August 2006}}</ref> Hezbollah's 1985 manifesto outlined [[Ideology of Hezbollah|its key objectives]], which include expelling Western influence from the region, [[Calls for the destruction of Israel|destroying Israel]], pledging allegiance to [[Supreme Leader of Iran|Iran's supreme leader]], and establishing an [[Islamic republic|Islamic government]] influenced by [[Khomeinism|Iran's political ideology]]. However, the manifesto also emphasized Lebanese self-determination.<ref>{{cite book |author=Itamar Rabinovich |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iVJR9UZnTVAC&pg=PA425 |title=Israel in the Middle East |publisher=UPNE |year=2008}}</ref> The group is believed to be responsible for the bombings of both the [[1983 US embassy bombing in Beirut|US embassy]] and the [[1983 Beirut barracks bombings|American and French barracks]] in [[Beirut]] in 1983, as well as later attacks, including bombings and hijackings.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Laverty |first1=Rory |last2=Lamothe |first2=Dan |date=2024-09-21 |title=For Americans scarred by Beirut bombings, a measure of delayed justice |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/09/21/beirut-bombings-marines-hezbollah/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |quote=Hezbollah was founded in 1982, as violence against U.S. troops in Lebanon spiked. In addition to its roles in the major bombings of 1983, the militant group was involved in the bombing of the U.S. Embassy annex in Beirut in 1984 that killed 23 people, the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 in 1985 and the Khobar Towers attack in Saudi Arabia in 1996 that killed 19 U.S. airmen, according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lopez |first=German |date=2024-09-24 |title=Israel's Strikes on Lebanon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/24/briefing/israel-hezbollah-lebanon.html |work=The New York Times |quote=Hezbollah first gained international notoriety in 1983, when it blew up the American embassy in Beirut, Lebanon’s capital, and later American and French barracks there.}}</ref> Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Hezbollah fought against Israeli forces and the [[South Lebanon Army]] (SLA), eventually leading to Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lopez |first=German |date=2024-09-24 |title=Israel's Strikes on Lebanon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/24/briefing/israel-hezbollah-lebanon.html |work=The New York Times}}</ref> Hezbollah also played a prominent role in the [[2006 Lebanon War]] and later became involved in the [[Syrian civil war]], where it fought alongside the Syrian government against rebel forces.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barnard |first=Anne |date=3 January 2014 |title=Mystery in Hezbollah Operatives Life and Death |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/04/world/middleeast/mystery-in-hezbollah-operatives-life-and-death.html |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref>

Despite calls for disarmament under [[United Nations Security Council]] resolutions, Hezbollah has expanded its military capabilities. Its armed wing is now considered stronger than the [[Lebanese Armed Forces]],<ref name="NYT052020132">{{cite news |last=Barnard |first=Anne |date=20 May 2013 |title=Hezbollah's Role in Syria War Shakes the Lebanese |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/21/world/middleeast/syria-developments.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |access-date=20 June 2013 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> making it one of the most powerful non-state actors in the world. Hezbollah leader [[Hassan Nasrallah]] declared in 2021 that the group had 100,000 fighters.<ref>{{Cite news |last=El Deeb |first=Sarah |date=18 October 2021 |title=Hezbollah leader declares his group has 100,000 fighters |url=https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-lebanon-beirut-civil-wars-hassan-nasrallah-a3c10d99cca2ef1c3d58dae135297025 |access-date=21 October 2021 |work=Associated Press News}}</ref> Hezbollah has been involved in several high-profile attacks; it is believed to be responsible for the [[1983 US embassy bombing in Beirut|bombing of the US embassy]] and the [[1983 Beirut barracks bombings|American and French barracks]] bombings in Beirut in 1983, as well as later attacks, including bombings and hijackings.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Laverty |first1=Rory |last2=Lamothe |first2=Dan |date=2024-09-21 |title=For Americans scarred by Beirut bombings, a measure of delayed justice |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/09/21/beirut-bombings-marines-hezbollah/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |quote=Hezbollah was founded in 1982, as violence against U.S. troops in Lebanon spiked. In addition to its roles in the major bombings of 1983, the militant group was involved in the bombing of the U.S. Embassy annex in Beirut in 1984 that killed 23 people, the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 in 1985 and the Khobar Towers attack in Saudi Arabia in 1996 that killed 19 U.S. airmen, according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lopez |first=German |date=2024-09-24 |title=Israel's Strikes on Lebanon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/24/briefing/israel-hezbollah-lebanon.html |work=The New York Times |quote=Hezbollah first gained international notoriety in 1983, when it blew up the American embassy in Beirut, Lebanon’s capital, and later American and French barracks there.}}</ref> While Hezbollah has been regarded as a [[resistance movement]] by some scholars,{{Sfn|Farida|2019|p=1-2}}{{Sfn|Daher|2019|p=8}}{{Sfn|Al-Aloosy|2020|p=43, 74}} while others regard the entire organization, or its military wing alone, has been designated as a [[List of designated terrorist groups|terrorist group]] by over 20 countries,<ref name="Rudoren-Jodi-2013b2">{{Cite news |author1=Kanter, James |author2=Rudoren, Jodi |date=22 July 2013 |title=European Union Adds Military Wing of Hezbollah to List of Terrorist Organizations |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/23/world/middleeast/european-union-adds-hezbollah-wing-to-terror-list.html |access-date=4 September 2013 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> including most Western countries.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Roche |first1=MaryClare |last2=Robbins |first2=Michael |date=2024-07-12 |title=What the Lebanese People Really Think of Hezbollah |url=https://www.foreignaffairs.com/lebanon/what-lebanese-people-really-think-hezbollah |access-date=2024-09-28 |work=Foreign Affairs |language=en-US |issn=0015-7120}}</ref>

Early on, Hezbollah was influenced by ideas from prominent Sunni Islamists. Hezbollah's own rhetoric was Islamist in general, rather than Shi'i in particular.{{Sfn|Al-Aloosy|2020|p=78-79}} Hezbollah's position on the Sunni-Shi'i divide was that instead of dwelling on theological differences, Sunnis and Shi'ites ought to cooperate with one another to oppose the Israeli occupation of Arab lands.{{Sfn|Al-Aloosy|2020|p=78-79}} To maintain a sense of Muslim unity, Hezbollah avoided direct criticism of Saudi Arabia; even during the [[2007 Lebanon conflict|2007 Lebanon's conflict with the Salafis]], Al-Manar TV's employees had instructions "not to talk badly about Saudi Arabia".{{Sfn|Al-Aloosi|2020|p=80}} This changed, however, after the the beginning of the [[Saudi-led intervention in the Yemeni civil war]].{{Sfn|Al-Aloosi|2020|p=80}}

On 16 February 1985, Sheik Ibrahim al-Amin issued Hezbollah's manifesto. The ideology presented in it was described as radical.{{By whom|date=January 2020}} Its first objective was to [[Anti-imperialism|fight against]] what Hezbollah described as [[American imperialism|American]] and [[Israeli occupation of the West Bank|Israeli imperialism]], including the [[Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon]] and other territories. The second objective was to gather all Muslims into an "[[ummah]]", under which Lebanon would further the aims of the [[1979 Revolution]] of Iran. It also declared it would protect all Lebanese communities, excluding those that collaborated with Israel, and support all national movements—both Muslim and non-Muslim—throughout the world.{{which|date=January 2020|reason=Which kinds of national movements?}} The ideology has since evolved, and today Hezbollah is a left-wing political entity focused on social injusticejustice.<ref>{{cite book |last1name=Engeland|first1=Anisseh Van|last2=Rudolph |first2=Rachael M.|title=From Terrorism to Politics|date=2013 |publisher=Ashgate Publishing |isbn=978-1-4094-9870-4|page=36}}<"engeland"/ref>

}}</ref> one component of which is ''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.<ref name="USDbackground2801">{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/s/ct/rls/rpt/fto/2801.htm|title=Background Information on Foreign Terrorist Organizations|author=US Department of State|date=8 October 1999|access-date=20 October 2012}}</ref> Some scholars have regarded Hezbollah as a [[resistance movement]] by some scholars.{{Sfn|Farida|2019|p=1-2}}{{Sfn|Daher|2019|p=8}}{{Sfn|Al-Aloosy|2020|p=43, 74}}

The '''Lebanese Resistance Brigades''' ({{lang-langx|ar|سرايا المقاومة اللبنانية|Sarāyā l-Muqāwama al-Lubnāniyya}}), also known as the '''Lebanese Brigades to Resist the Israeli Occupation''', were formed by Hezbollah in 1997 as a multifaith (Christian, Druze, Sunni and Shia) volunteer force to combat the Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon. With the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000, the organization was disbanded.<ref>{{cite book |last=Blanford |first=Nicholas |date=2011 |title=Warriors of God: Inside Hezbollah's Thirty-Year Struggle Against Israel |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lJWGvIcmODoC&q=resistance+brigades+lebanon+2008&pg=PT582 |location=New York |publisher=[[Random House]] |page=582 |isbn=978-0-679-60516-4 |access-date=26 April 2014 }}</ref>

The 2006 Lebanon War was a 34-day military conflict in Lebanon and northern Israel. The principal parties were Hezbollah [[paramilitary]] forces and the Israeli military. The conflict was precipitated by a cross-border raid during which Hezbollah kidnapped and killed Israeli soldiers. [[Zar'it-Shtula incident|The conflict began]] on 12 July 2006 when Hezbollah militants fired [[List of artillery#Rockets|rockets]] at Israeli border towns as a diversion for an [[anti-tank missile]] attack on two armored [[Humvee]]s patrolling the Israeli side of the border fence, killing three, injuring two, and seizing two Israeli soldiers.<ref name="a">{{cite news|url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/July_War06.asp |title=Timeline of the July War 2006 |newspaper=The Daily Star |access-date=22 January 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101210085022/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/July_War06.asp |archive-date=10 December 2010 }}</ref><ref name="b">{{cite web | url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/07/18/2307095.htm?site=news | title=Israel buries soldiers recovered in prisoner swap | publisher=ABC News | access-date=22 January 2015| date=17 July 2008 }}</ref>

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