Facts on Iran-backed Hezbollah
- Hezbollah (“Party of God” in Arabic) is a Lebanese Shiite Muslim terrorist organization and political party which has an estimated 40,000 short and medium-range missiles aimed at Israel capable of hitting Tel Aviv and other major population centers.
- Born in Lebanon in 1982 but nurtured in Iran, Hezbollah has gone from a radical offshoot of the Shiite Amal Party and militia to a major force in regional politics.
- It is now recognized as a highly skilled, worldwide terrorist network which is about to take over the Lebanese government.
- Hezbollah officials are implicated in the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in a car bombing that killed 21 other people. Hezbollah recently brought down the government of Hariri’s son, Saad Hariri, to prevent a UN tribunal from issuing indictments against its members.
- Hezbollah’s backyard is south Lebanon, locally known as the Jebel Amal.
- Hezbollah’s front yard is Israel. Since the withdrawal of Israeli forces in accordance with U.N. Security Council Resolution 425 (from 1978), Hezbollah has maintained positions directly opposite the Israeli border.
Hezbollah Fighters and Weapons’ Capabilities in South Lebanon
- July 12, 2010 marked the fourth anniversary of the beginning of Israel’s defensive war against Hezbollah. With Iran’s aid, Hezbollah has been actively building up its arsenal and guerilla warfare capabilities since its war with Israel in 2006. Both are direct violations of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for Hezbollah to disarm. It is critical for 1701 to be enforced.
Hezbollah stores weapons and stations its forces in Shiite villages and towns where any military exchange with Israel would result in significant civilian casualties.- Hezbollah has a large weapons cache, outmatching those of actual armies, including that of the Lebanese Armed Forces. The majority of weapons come from Syria and Iran which supplied unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for reconnaissance purposes.
- The estimate for Hezbollah’s rocket capabilities is that it possesses at least 40,000 rockets of various range abilities.
- Regarding disarmament, Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah said:
“Whoever wants to forcefully disarm the Resistance – and I have said this more than once – we will chop off his hand, behead him, and get rid of his soul. We are that determined.”
- Iran provided Hezbollah with $200 million in 2008 to fund its terrorist activities, and has trained 3,000 Hezbollah militants in Iranian camps.
