What is Hezbollah?
• Hezbollah is a terrorist organization formed by radical Lebanese Shi’a groups in 1982 with the goals of (1) the expulsion of Israeli and Western presence in Lebanon; (2) the establishment of an Islamic state modeled on Iran; (3) the destruction of Israel; and (4) the capture of Jerusalem and its placement under Muslim rule. • Hezbollah was designated as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) in October 1997 and a threat to the Middle East peace process in January 1995. • For more than 20 years, Hezbollah has been an international terrorist threat – facilitating or sponsoring bombings, hijackings, kidnappings, and assassinations globally. Hezbollah was among the first groups to make use of suicide attacks in the Middle East. • Hezbollah has taken credit for and is suspected of being involved in a number of direct attacks against United States interests and citizens overseas, including the terrorist killing of 241 American Marines as they slept in their barrack in Beirut in 1983. • Add
Also referred to as Hizbullah by some, Hezbollah means the “Party of God.” God in this instance refers to Allah, the God of Islam. Hezbollah is a militant Islamic group that was formed in the early 1980s, purportedly to counter the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. This group holds that any land considered Israeli land is in fact Muslim territory that is simply being occupied by Israel. Harsh Hezbollah rhetoric includes statements that Israel has no right to exist and that Israel’s destruction is part of its mission. The group has been fighting with Israel for decades and has dug into Lebanon, intermingling with its government as well as its citizenry. Many Lebanese people see Hezbollah as a protector and a provider of social services, although it is classified by Israel and others around the world as an Islamic terrorist organization. In 2006, as Hezbollah crossed Israel’s border, killed and kidnapped a handful of its soldiers, and began raining rockets over civilian populations, Israel ag
Following are facts about Lebanese group Hezbollah, which is set to conduct a prisoner exchange with Israel on Wednesday. HISTORY * Hezbollah, meaning “Party of God” in Arabic, shares the Shi’ite Islamist ideology of Iran and was set up with the help of Iranian Revolutionary Guards in 1982 to fight Israeli forces that had invaded Lebanon. Hezbollah still has strong support from Tehran. It is also backed by Damascus. The group is listed as a terrorist organisation by the United States. * The group fought a 34-day war with Israel in 2006 that cost 1,200 lives in Lebanon and 159 in Israel. The war was sparked by a July 12 cross-border raid in which Hezbollah seized two Israeli soldiers. It said it wanted to use them to negotiate a prisoner exchange. Despite U.N. resolutions and an expanded U.N. peacekeeping force, Hezbollah has rearmed since the war. * Hezbollah claimed victory over Israel in 2000 when its forces withdrew from mainly Shi’ite south Lebanon. * Shadowy groups linked to Hezbo
Hezbollah, or Party of God, was founded by Lebanese Shiites in 1982 after Israel invaded Lebanon. With Iranian help, the group organized the country’s Shiite minority into a national force with its own militia, TV station, parliamentary bloc and cabinet minister while resisting national and international calls to disarm. The group is led by 46-year-old secretary general Hasan Nasrallah, an Iranian educated cleric who boasts that his militia is the only Arab force ever to have defeated Israel. The group’s armed wing was created to fight Israeli forces that invaded Lebanon in 1982 (and later, U.S. troops sent as peacekeepers). A Hezbollah suicide bombing killed 241 Marines in October 1983, prompting the U.S. to withdraw its forces. As Israel forces retreated to southern Lebanon, Hezbollah harassed them with small arms and missile attacks until the Israelis withdrew altogether in 2000. Since then, Hezbollah has continued to launch attacks in a deserted portion of territory held by Israel,
