Pros And Cons Of Hezbollah

Tensions in the Middle East have been watched from around the world, with increased dread and fear as fervent militant fighting and terror attacks happen more frequently. The strained struggle between Saudi Arabia and Iran primarily comes down to two factors – the battle to be the dominant nation in the Middle East, and the fact that two countries represent the regional strongholds of the two leading rival branches of Islam. As journalist M. Kamali wrote, “Analyzing civil society in Muslim countries requires that we recognize Islam not only as a religion, but also as a political theory and the major source of a legitimization of political power.” (1)

Iran gave direct support to Hezbollah through the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. Hezbollah opposed Lebanon because it was supported by Israel and the United States, and in 1985 it issued its political agenda through the “Open Letter to the Downtrodden in Lebanon and in the World.”# In 1989, the Taif Accord emerged and the Lebanese Civil War ended in 1990 when Syrian troops moved into parts of Lebanon that were not occupied by Israel. The Taif Accord balanced powers between Christians and Muslims in Lebanon, and overall tried to maneuver equality amongst both groups although Sunni elites were given the dominant role. After the Taif Accord, economic conditions continued to worsen and many began to underestimate the ability of Syria to control Lebanon. Syria then made the strategic move to promote Rafiq al-Hariri in 1992 to rescue Lebanon from its eventual demise. Hariri was able to boost the economy and revive morale in the Sunni communities. By the 1990s Hariri was capable of governing Lebanon independent of Syria. This began a decline of Syrian support for him, and a decline of Sunni dominance. After Hariri’s assassination in 2005, Syria was able to grasp control of Lebanon once more, and enabled Hezbollah to demonstrate a larger role. First existing as a revolutionary Islamist movement,

Eric Kaufmann, a professor of politics at Birkbeck University in London, has spent years studying the ways that ethnicity intersects with politics. While most researchers in that field focus on ethnic minorities, Professor Kaufmann does the opposite: He studies the behavior of ethnic majorities, particularly whites in the United States and Britain.

“Hezbollah began its existence with leaders, such as al-Musawi, al-Khalil, and Mughniyah, who had proven their competence in the crucible of Lebanon’s Civil War.” With these leaders, they recruited fighters with an extensive military training background, which proved to be an asset against the Israeli army. There is said to be tens of thousands of Hezbollah members within their ranks and could increase up to a hundred thousand or more. Abbas al-Musawi was the senior leader of Hezbollah before the Israeli’s killed him in 1992. Hassan Nasarallah became the next senior leader of Hezbollah, also known as the Secretary-General; essentially he makes all the decisions for any political or paramilitary activities. Nasrallah was a student of al-Musawi in a religious seminary school in Iraq, and he regarded al-Musawi as his mentor. He was a strong supporter of the Israel resistance and while in school, he organized a group of Shiite’s to assist in the invasion of Israel. Even though Nasrallah has faced criticism from his own people, he has “won broad grassroots support by cultivating a social welfare network that provided schools, clinics, and housing in the predominantly Shiite parts of Lebanon.” He has proven to be a very intelligent, religious, and charismatic figure across the Arab nations, and has gained much support and popularity for Hezbollah’s terrorist activities. Underneath Secretary-General Nasrallah is second-in-command, Naim Qassem, the top political advisor to Nasrallah, Hussein al-Khalil, and now deceased spiritual leader or chief Mujtahid, Sheikh Muhammed Hussein Fadlallah. “For more than twenty years, Imad Fayez Mugniyah was considered Hezbollah’s top planner of worldwide terrorist operations,” but he was replaced by Mohammed Rida Zahidi in 2008. Finally, the head of security is Wafiq Safa, who was a founder of Hezbollah and

To some Hezbollah, the “Party for God”, is a political group fighting for nationalism and to others, particularly western cultures; Hezbollah is a very dangerous terrorist organization. Hezbollah is a Shiite Muslim group based in Iran and Southern Lebanon. They have an extensive network that crosses international borders and consists of everything from schools and hospitals to a television station.

Hezbollah is a Shia militia in southern Lebanon that aims to destroy Israel in order to help spread Pan-Islam throughout the Middle East, get the Palestinians that are taking their land out of Lebanon, and repay the Israelis for their abusive occupation. Hezbollah’s actions are inspired by the principles of Shia islam that make the militiamen willing to die to become a martyr and to better Islam. Although Hezbollah is in Lebanon, it is largely an extension of Iran, who began funding them after their Islamic revolution in 1979.

“It is imperative for other states to accept the reality of Iran’s prominent role in the Middle East and beyond and to recognize and respect Iran’s legitimate national rights, interests, and security concerns.”

It is at this backdrop that the paper will look into the relationship of these two gulf counties including Bahrain, Yemen, and Syria. Besides the proxy war, there is also the fervor of armed militants in the Gulf that are motivated by their

>Khalidi participated in peace negotiations in the 1990’s as an advisor so he cites original, unreleased documents showing American and Israeli positions.

Hezbollah, a radical Shi’a Muslim group located in southern Lebanon was formed with the purpose of liberating Jerusalem through establishing an Islamic government across the Arab world as well as the group does not acknowledge the authority of the State of Israel. There are many names that Hezbollah has been referred to such as Party of God, Organization by the Oppressed of Earth, and the Revolutionary Justice Organization. The United States State Department labeled Hezbollah a foreign terrorist organization.

Hezbollah was formed in 1982 by radical Lebanese Shiites who wanted to create an Islamic state in Lebanon and to free their land of Israeli domination (Byers, 2003). These extremists called their group Hezbollah, in English this translates to Party

He said this in his first message after he has been appointed supreme leader of militant group in May.

Specific events- In October 1983, Hezbollah bombed a multinational army base killing over 250 American troops and over 50 French troops. They think it was suicide

said that Bush had tried to personally coach Maliki in his initial days as president of

A transformed Middle East has shaken traditional relationships with former allies. Indeed, there was a time when Washington coordinated effectively with leaders like the monarchs Hussein, Hassan and Abdullah; or Sadat, Mubarak, even Arafat, who could deliver their constituencies and act on the Arab stage. No longer. The rise of Iran, largely as a result of the Arab world’s melt­down and the U.S.­Iran nuclear agreement, has strained relations further. And if America lacks partners on whom it can rely, how in essence can it manage problems effectively, let alone lead to resolve them? A transformed Middle East has shaken traditional relationships with former allies. Indeed, there was a time when Washington coordinated effectively with leaders like the monarchs Hussein, Hassan and Abdullah; or Sadat, Mubarak, even Arafat, who could deliver their constituencies and act on the Arab stage. No longer. The rise of Iran, largely as a result of the Arab world’s melt­down and the U.S.­Iran nuclear agreement, has strained relations further.