Hezbollah is much more than a terrorist organization – it’s a state within a state, an army within an army, and Iran’s strongest branch outside its borders. With more than 150,000 rockets, UAVs, drones, precision missiles, and tens of thousands of trained terrorists.

The organization was established in the early 1980s in Lebanon by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards to turn Lebanon into an Iranian client state and fight Israel relentlessly. Hezbollah represents Iran’s strongest branch in the Middle East, works to destabilize the region, and drives Iranian expansion ambitions.

Ideology: Hezbollah’s ideology is extreme, unambiguous, and has a clear goal:

• Shiite Islamic rule in Lebanon – turning Lebanon into a Shiite state governed by Sharia law, according to the Iranian vision.

• Opposition to Zionism and Jews – Hezbollah is not only anti-Israel but fundamentally antisemitic, promoting conspiracy theories about Jews and seeking to harm them worldwide.

• Destruction of Israel – The organization does not recognize Israel’s right to exist and sees it as an enemy that must be erased from the map.

Iran – The Driving Force Behind Hezbollah Why did Iran establish Hezbollah in the first place? The answer is simple: The “Islamic Revolution” of 1979 wasn’t just a change of government within Iran – it was supposed to be the movement that would take over the Muslim world. The Iranian regime works to export the Shiite revolution and create an “axis of resistance” against the West, Israel, and Sunni Arab countries. The Ayatollah regime sees Hezbollah as a military branch that allows it to fight Israel and the West without getting directly involved, and they invest billions of dollars in the organization, provide it with advanced weapons, and train its terrorists.

Terrorist Activities and International Recognition Hezbollah is one of the most murderous organizations in the world, with attacks that have struck Israel and the West. Here’s a shortened list:

• 1983 – Attack against US Marines in Beirut: 241 American soldiers and 58 French soldiers were killed in a suicide attack.

• 1992 – Attack on the Israeli Embassy in Argentina: 29 dead, over 200 wounded.

• 1994 – Attack on the Jewish Community Center (AMIA) in Buenos Aires: 85 dead.

• 2006 – Kidnapping of IDF soldiers at the Lebanon border, which led to the Second Lebanon War.

• 2012 – Terrorist attack in Burgas, Bulgaria: 5 Israelis murdered.

In addition to its terrorist actions, the organization also intervened in Syria and other countries – Hezbollah sent thousands of fighters to help Assad in the Syrian civil war, carried out attacks in Iraq and Yemen, and even operated weapons and drug smuggling networks in Europe and Latin America.

The organization has been recognized as a terrorist organization by many countries including the US, European Union, Australia, and Germany, while countries like Russia and China view it as a “resistance movement.”

Hezbollah in the Iron Swords War When Hamas launched its terror attack on October 7, 2023, Hezbollah planned to attack from the north to create a multi-front war. In the first weeks, it fired tens of thousands of rockets at northern Israeli communities, launched thousands of drones, and fought battles against IDF forces on the Lebanon border. However, as the war continued, Hezbollah realized that Israel was much more prepared for battle than expected.

In September 2024, after almost a year of exchanges of fire in northern Israel, the IDF launched the “Northern Arrows” operation, during which it attacked Hezbollah targets in Lebanon with tremendous force. Tens of thousands of targets were destroyed, including headquarters, bunkers, weapons depots, and weapons convoys. The organization suffered a devastating blow, especially with the elimination of the organization’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, along with other senior officials.

The IDF didn’t stop there. Nasrallah’s replacement, Hashem Safieddine, was eliminated shortly after being appointed. After him, Mohammad Reza Falahzadeh, an officer from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was appointed as interim until November 2024 when Naim Qassem was declared as Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, and he chose to flee to Iran and hide under the protection of the Ayatollah regime.

One of the most memorable moments of the war is the pager operation. An operation in which the Israeli Mossad detonated thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon and Syria in impressive coordination. An operation that received international recognition and praise, and even the organization’s Secretary-General at the time, Hassan Nasrallah (deceased), admitted it was an “unprecedented blow in Lebanon’s history.”

Ceasefire – And What Now? After months of fighting, Israel and Hezbollah reached a ceasefire agreement – the Hezbollah terrorist organization emerged significantly weakened. With thousands of casualties, destruction of critical infrastructure, and loss of most of its senior command. Despite this, the ceasefire did not lead to its disarmament – and it still poses a serious threat to Israel and the northern part of the country.

Lebanon, for its part, is in economic and political chaos, with a public tired of Hezbollah’s control and wanting freedom. The question is – can Lebanon free itself from the Iranian grip, or will the Shiite terrorists continue to hold it hostage?

In conclusion, Hezbollah is not just a military threat – it is a regional and global threat, an Iranian proxy that promotes terrorism, seeks to destabilize the Middle East, and leads the struggle for Israel’s destruction. The recent war was a severe blow to it, but according to its extreme ideology – it is already looking for the next opportunity to act. Israel and the West cannot afford to rest – the fight against Hezbollah terrorism is far from over.