October 22, 2016 | Policy Brief
The Hezbollah Threat
From the Marine Barracks Bombing to Today
October 22, 2016 | Policy Brief
The Hezbollah Threat
From the Marine Barracks Bombing to Today
Sunday marks the 33rd anniversary of the most deadly state-sponsored terrorist attack against American citizens prior to September 11, 2001. On October 23, 1983, Hezbollah killed 241 American and 58 French peacekeepers, along with six civilians, in a terrorist attack on the buildings in Beirut housing the Multinational Force in Lebanon.
“The complicity of Iran in the 1983 attack was established conclusively by the testimony of Admiral James Lyons, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Plans, Policy and Operation from 1983-85,” according to Judge Royce Lamberth, who presided over the 2003 court case, Peterson vs. Islamic Republic of Iran, which held Iran accountable.
According to reports, Admiral Lyons was alerted to an intercept from Iranian intelligence to Tehran’s Ambassador in Damascus, Ali Akbar Mohtashemipour, in September 1983. The message to Mohtashemipour, who served as a liaison to Tehran’s Lebanese partners (which later became Hezbollah) and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) called for “a spectacular action against the United States Marines.” The attack, according to Judge Lamberth, was the “largest non-nuclear explosion that had ever been detonated on the face of the Earth.”
While Hezbollah represents Iran’s initial success at exporting its Islamic Revolution, today Tehran has spawned a plethora of other Shiite militias and proxy forces. Indeed, Major General Qassem Soleimani, Commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds-Force, boasted in 2015, “We are witnessing the export of the Islamic revolution throughout the region.”
Notably, Iran has powerful proxy groups operating in Iraq, Syria, the Palestinian territories, and to a lesser extent Yemen. But it is still Hezbollah that remains Iran’s most potent proxy. The group maintains a massive rocket arsenal in Lebanon, it has an expanded covert presence worldwide, and its troops are deployed to many of the regional hot-spots where Iran seeks to either gain influence or foment instability.
Recent claims suggest that Hezbollah is “bogged down” in the Syrian theater as part of Iran’s efforts to prop up a beleaguered Assad regime. One analyst even suggests that Hezbollah is less of a threat to the West as a result. While the group has sustained heavy losses, Hezbollah’s capabilities remain lethal.
There are tools at the disposal of the U.S. and its allies to diminish the threat. This includes enforcing the existing Hezbollah sanctions and designations, but also aggressively designating hundreds of other individuals and entities associated with the group in the region and globally that serve as its funding sources. Moreover, the U.S. should work with regional partners to interdict the shipment of both fighters and munitions to Hezbollah’s war zones. This includes keeping a close eye on Iranian aviation companies – such as Iran Air and Mahan Air – that ferry fighters, advisors, and arms to these combat theaters.
In the aftermath of last summer’s nuclear deal, which is set to enrich Hezbollah’s Iranian patrons, Congress has increased its efforts to combat Hezbollah. More will be needed to keep this group in check. With new leaders ascending in the United States and Europe, the environment is ripe for new efforts to contain this global threat.
The authors serve as Vice President for Government Relations and Strategy, Senior Iran Analyst, and Research Analyst, respectively, at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies