Hezbollah was founded in 1982 by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. (Data map)
Beirut:
Hezbollah said on Thursday that Israel would pay a “price” for the killing of 10 people, including five children, in southern Lebanon, the deadliest day for Lebanese civilians in four months of hostilities on the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Lebanese Hezbollah has been exchanging fire with Israeli troops on the border since Palestinian ally Hamas started war with Israel on October 7 in Gaza. It was the worst fighting since the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel.
How risky is the upgrade?
The conflict between Hezbollah and Israel coincides with the war in Gaza, fueling concerns about the risk of an all-out confrontation between the heavily armed adversaries.
Lebanese sources said that on the evening of February 14, Israel launched an attack that killed seven civilians in Nabatiya, including three children. Earlier, an attack occurred in the border village of Savannah, killing a woman and her two children.
The Israeli military said it killed a commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan unit, his commander and another operative in a “precision airstrike” in Nabatiya, but made no mention of civilian deaths Number of people.
Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel have both said they do not seek an all-out war and the conflict has been largely contained to areas near the border. A source familiar with Hezbollah’s thinking said the attack on Nabatiya marked an escalation by Israel but remained within unwritten “rules of engagement.”
According to Israeli statistics, since Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, Hezbollah has attacked Israeli border targets almost every day, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping about 250 others.
Hezbollah has said it will halt its operations only if Israel halts its offensive in Gaza, according to the health ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza. According to health authorities in Hamas-controlled Gaza, the group has killed more than 28,000 people.
Israel has vowed to continue its offensive against Gaza.
Iranian Foreign Minister Amirab Abdullahian said on February 10 that the United States has asked Tehran to ask Hezbollah not to be fully involved in the war between Israel and Hamas.
What are the origins of Hezbollah?
In 1982, during Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards formed Hezbollah. It was part of Iran’s efforts to export its 1979 Islamic Revolution to the region and to fight Israeli forces after its 1982 invasion of Lebanon.
The group has grown from a shadowy faction into a heavily armed force with significant influence over the Lebanese state. The United States, some Western countries and other countries consider it a terrorist organization.
How powerful is Hezbollah’s military?
While other groups disarmed after Lebanon’s civil war, Hezbollah retained weapons to fight Israeli forces occupying the predominantly Shia Muslim south of the country. Years of guerrilla warfare led to Israel’s withdrawal in 2000.
In 2006, Hezbollah demonstrated its military superiority in a five-week war with Israel that broke out after the group entered Israel, kidnapped two soldiers and killed others.
Hezbollah fired thousands of rockets at Israel during the conflict, killing 1,200 people in Lebanon, mostly civilians, and 158 Israelis, mostly soldiers.
Hezbollah has been growing its military strength after deploying to Syria to help President Bashar Assad fight mainly Sunni Muslim insurgents. Hezbollah says its forces have precision rockets that can strike across Israel.
What role has Hezbollah played so far in the Israel-Hamas conflict?
Hezbollah has deep ties to Hamas, which controls Gaza, and Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian faction backed by Iran.
Since October 7, Hezbollah and Israel have engaged in increasingly frequent cross-border exchanges of fire. Hamas and Islamic Jihad, both operating in Lebanon, launched the first attack on Israel from Lebanon, including the cross-border infiltration of Islamic Jihad into Israel on October 10.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said on October 22 that if Hezbollah opens a front with Israel, Lebanon will suffer a counterattack on an “unimaginable” scale.
What regional influence does Hezbollah have?
The conflict in Gaza has rippled across the Middle East, with Hezbollah inspiring and supporting other Iran-backed groups.
In February, Washington launched strikes against Iran-aligned groups in Iraq, Syria and Yemen in retaliation for deadly attacks on U.S. troops in Jordan.
Saudi Arabia says Hezbollah has also provided support to the Houthis, Iran’s allies in Yemen. Hezbollah denies this.
What role does Hezbollah play in Lebanon?
Hezbollah’s influence is fueled by its advanced weapons arsenal and the support of many Lebanese Shiites, who say it defends Lebanon from Israel.
Lebanese parties that oppose Hezbollah say the group undermines the country and accuse it of unilaterally dragging Lebanon into armed conflict. Hezbollah has ministers in the government and legislators in parliament.
Saudi Arabia entered Lebanese politics more prominently in 2005 after Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon following the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who symbolized Saudi influence in the country.
A U.N.-backed court convicted three Hezbollah members in absentia for the assassination. Hezbollah denies any role and calls the court a tool of its enemies.
In 2008, a power struggle between Hezbollah and its Lebanese political rivals turned into a brief conflict. Hezbollah militants have seized parts of Beirut after the government vowed to take action against the group’s military communications network.
In 2018, Hezbollah and its allies won a majority in parliament. In 2022, the group lost its majority, but the group continues to exert significant political influence.
Is Hezbollah accused of attacking Western targets?
Lebanese officials and Western intelligence agencies say groups linked to Hezbollah carried out suicide attacks on Western embassies and targets and kidnapped Westerners in the 1980s.
The United States holds Hezbollah responsible for a suicide bombing that destroyed the U.S. Marine Corps headquarters in Beirut in 1983, killing 241 service members, and for a suicide attack on the U.S. Embassy that same year. In 1983, a suicide bombing also occurred in a French military camp in Beirut, killing 58 French paratroopers.
Speaking about these attacks and hostage-taking, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in a 2022 interview that they were carried out by small groups not affiliated with Hezbollah .
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
