Hezbollah: History, Tactics, and Counterterrorism Response

Introduction

Hezbollah (also spelled Hizbollah and Hizbullah) is an officially sanctioned political party in the Middle East. The group has been linked to several terrorist attacks, both directly — as by taking credit for actual attacks — and indirectly, through funding or the implicit condoning of violent acts. This paper examines the threat posed by Hezbollah and the methods by which it operates, along with its ideology and that of the broader regional context which allows it to act with such impunity. It will first address the motivation and goals of Hezbollah, then turn to the tactics and strategies of the organization, including previous terrorist attacks, and finally assess governmental reactions and ways of addressing the threat to national, regional, and global security.

History and Motivation of the Organization

Hezbollah was formed in 1982 in response to the war in Lebanon — specifically, the political disputes with Israel and the subsequent Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon. The founders of the organization sought to more fully support Islamic fundamentalism and to remove Israel from the country. They believed that apathy and a lack of religious devotion to fundamentalist principles were significant problems in Lebanon. Although the stated aim of the conflict was to remove Israel from the area and to establish "Peace for Galilee," some scholars have noted that "it would have been more honest to call [the war] 'the war to safeguard the occupation of the West Bank,'" asserting that Israel acted in the area not to promote peace but to protect its own territory (Harkabi, 1989, p. 99). Although motivations for invasion, retribution, and jihad — or holy war — in the Middle East are varied not just per conflict but per the perspective of the person assessing them, it is nonetheless established that the political party of Hezbollah was formed in response to the perceived unfair and unprovoked invasion of Lebanon by Israel (Israel Information Division, 2005).

In keeping with this motivation, the political platform of Hezbollah openly states its opposition to Israel and the West. Three of the primary goals stated in that platform are as follows:

The solution to Lebanon's problems is the establishment of an Islamic republic, as only this type of regime can secure justice and equality for all of Lebanon's citizens.

The Hezbollah organization views as an important goal the fight against "western imperialism" and its eradication from Lebanon. The group strives for complete American and French withdrawal from Lebanon, including all their institutions.

The conflict with Israel is viewed as a central concern. This is not only limited to the IDF presence in Lebanon. Rather, the complete destruction of the State of Israel and the establishment of Islamic rule over Jerusalem is an expressed goal (Saad-Ghoreyeb, 2002).

Tactics and Techniques of Terrorism

This open opposition to the West became a primary motivator for Hezbollah and its terrorist actions against Israel and the West. The goal of establishing an Islamic republic — a fundamentalist state governed by Islamic clerics — gave rise to the concept of "holy war" as a justification for these terrorist attacks.

After declaring itself a political party, Hezbollah began operating openly and without an "umbrella" or cover group. Currently, the party holds 23 of 128 seats in Lebanon's parliament, making it a significant political force in the region. It also participates in nation-building and conventional political activities such as lobbying and fundraising to support itself. In addition to these funds, the group has long been supported by Iran and other fundamentalist Islamic governments, supplementing its income through these "donations" in support of a fundamentalist religious state and continued terror directed toward Israel and the West, especially the United States (BBC, 9 March 2005). Despite this, the organization has been condemned internationally for its support of terrorist methods. Some analysts had believed that after the Israeli pullout from Lebanon in the late 1980s, Hezbollah would transition primarily into a political movement. Those hopes were not realized: "it now seems obvious, however, that Hizbullah has not changed, and that it remains a radical and militant organization whose principal objective is to lead an armed struggle against Israel" (Zisser, 2002).

Hezbollah has traditionally selected victims based on their affiliation or association with Israel. The perceived imperialism of the West — specifically the United States — has also been a major factor in target selection. Support for Israel or for Western civilization has been interpreted by Hezbollah as a threat to its own government and existence. The group employs propaganda methods, including operating its own television station that espouses its political vision and portrays Israel and the West as enemies (Shafer, 2004). This propaganda includes "propaganda videos set to jihadist songs, which make up about 25 percent of Al-Manar's programming day," as well as programming that seeks to "venerate suicide bombers as martyrs; call for the obliteration of Israel and the death of the United States; exhort Palestinians to violently overthrow their racist 'oppressors'; and portray Israelis as baby-slaughtering terrorists" (Shafer, 2004).

Aside from Hezbollah's propaganda arm, the organization's actual terrorist attacks — many of which are undisputed as having been carried out or planned by the group — have most significantly included suicide bombings, as well as more militarized operations such as artillery fire and the detonation of explosives (Israel Information Division, 2005). These assaults have grown in number over time. The Israel Foreign Ministry calculated the following attack figures: 19 in 1990, 52 in 1991, 63 in 1992, 158 in 1993, 187 in 1994, and 344 in 1995 — an exponential increase year over year (ibid.). The use of criminal enterprises such as kidnapping or narcotics trafficking to fund these activities has not been firmly established or linked to Hezbollah; it appears that the majority of the organization's funding comes from Iran, other sympathetic governments, and from the party's own political fundraising efforts in Lebanon and neighboring nations.

Conclusion and Policy Recommendations

This limit on international control over a foreign terrorist organization can be seen in many separate contexts and has become a significant national security issue for the United States and the West in the broader war on terror. Without state sponsorship, as in the case of al-Qaeda, combating terrorist organizations is already difficult. When a terrorist group enjoys at least tacit approval and protection from a sovereign state — as Hezbollah does through its formal political party status in Lebanon — fighting its terrorist operations becomes nearly impossible.