HIZBULLAH

Hizbullah

Hizbullah

Introduction

Hizbullah is a resistance group that emerged in Lebanon in the Hmid-1980s in the midst of the chaos of that country's civil war (1975-90). Within a few years it was best known for its large-scale acts of terrorism. Over the path of the next quarter century, Hizbullah also became one of Lebanon's major political powers. It had a solid political base among Lebanon's growing population of Shias (followers of the Shia sect of Islam), who had long been underrepresented in Lebanon's regime. In democratic elections in the early twenty-first century, Hizbullah members were elected into positions within the national government, winning a majority of votes. Around the world, observers anxiously watched this democratic process involving a group known for terrorism unfold. This paper discusses Hizbullah with facts and analysis related to it.

Discussion

Contrary to Islamic Sunni run and formed Al-Qaeda, Hizbullah is an Islamic Shia party. Monetarily backed by Iran, Hizbullah has been present for almost thirty years. Hizbullah means Party of God. It has been engaged in a long-term fight with Israel since the party's beginning. Known as the party that was active in driving Jewish forces out of Lebanon, the party has also expanded gratitude for maintaining the growth of hospitals and schools. The assessment of al-Qaeda and Hizbullah is of special interest. The conflict between Shia and Sunni forms of religion, based mainly on chain of leaders being voted in by educated leaders (Sunni) versus following family lines (Shia), is actual and, as they say, palpable. There is an fragmentary Shia versus Sunni disagreement that is expected to go on for as long as both are there. The long-term struggle and dislike is an evidence to the basic power of the ideological and faithful supporting of some adversarial parties. (Young, 2010)

Facts

The Party's Ideology

A very old and familiar proverb passed down for centuries states the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Israel is the common enemy of both al-Qaeda and Hizbullah. The degree of common distaste for Israel may be greater than the conflict between Shia and Sunni roots. Although both organizations would like to eradicate Israel, Hizbullah has been involved much more with the daily struggle on the ground. Hizbullah clearly became more powerful and gained recognition when it was successful at driving Jew forces out of Lebanon. Like al-Qaeda, Hizbullah uses the perceived occupation of regional land by U.S., Israeli, or allied forces as a basic tenet supporting its resistance and existence. (Fisk, 2006)

That Hizbullah is Iranian born and financed is an important fact. The Ayatollah Khomeini in Iran was a very strong influence over Hizbullah, from both faithful and financial perspectives. The Iranian ties and influences remain today.

Aims and Objectives

To determine the aims and objectives that underlies Hizbullah's adversarial conduct, scholars identifies several key points:

Ongoing funding from Iran continues to solidify Hizbullah's focus on the enemies of Iran.

Israel, the USA, and Western allies form the primary targets for militant raids.

Hizbullah was formed with strong Iranian Islamic Shia ideology, including support from ...