Lebanon

Hezbollah holds a military display in south Lebanon and threatens Israel

On May 21, 2023, Hezbollah held a military exercise in south Lebanon using live fire, which was well-covered by the media. The organization displayed its capabilities, reiterated its intention to obliterate the State of Israel and promoted the "unity of the arenas" narrative. Hezbollah operatives simulated breaking through Israel's border, taking control of an Israeli post or community and abducting soldiers. Weapons such as multiple-barrel rocket launchers mounted on armored vehicles, quadcopters and machine guns were displayed, but no missiles or UAVs. In ITIC assessment, Hezbollah tried to send a message that it would not lay down its arms or abandon its role as "Lebanon's defender," and promote the "unity of the arenas" narrative to the region in general and its "resistance axis" collaborators in particular.
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Spotlight on Terrorism: Hezbollah, Lebanon and Syria (May 5-18, 2023)

Hezbollah plans to hold a live-fire military exercise near the Israeli border on May 21, 2023. On May 12, 2023, Hezbollah secretary general Hassan Nasrallah gave a speech in which he represented the most recent round of fighting in the Gaza Strip as an achievement for the resistance axis. He also warned that any targeted killing in the future would not go without a response. The Lebanese minister of energy announced that in September 2023 the TotalEnergies and ENI oil and natural gas-drilling companies would begin drilling in Block 9 off the coast of Lebanon. Reservations are increasing in Lebanon regarding the candidacy of Suleiman Frangieh for president; he is close to Hezbollah and the Syrian regime.
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The Nujaba Movement – the Movement of the Noble Ones: One of the dominant pro-Iranian militias in Iraq

The Nujaba Movement (or the Movement of the Noble Ones, is an Iraqi Shiite pro-Iranian militia established in 2013 by Sheikh Akram Abbas al-Kaabi and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps’ Qods Force. It is one of the largest militias in the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).The Nujaba Movement numbers 8,000-10,000 operatives organized in three brigades, two based in Iraq and one in Syria. Regarding Israel, it should be noted that the militia is part of the Axis of Resistance led by Iran, and its goal is to act to “liberate” the Golan Heights and destroy the State of Israel.
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Spotlight on Terrorism: Hezbollah, Lebanon and Syria (April 21 – May 4, 2023)

The Iranian foreign minister, paid an official visit to Lebanon. He met with Hezbollah leader and toured south Lebanon near the Israeli border. On the sidelines of the visit he met with PIJ.Syrian sources reported Israeli Air Force attacks on Hezbollah and pro-Iranian Shi'ite militia targets in Syria. After the attacks Hezbollah forces reportedly redeployed in Syria.A Jerusalem district court sentenced an east Jerusalem dentist to five years in prison; he was convicted of spying for Hezbollah.A new study revealed sources of Hezbollah's funding and its involvement in the international drug trade.
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Spotlight on Terrorism: Hezbollah, Lebanon and Syria (April 6-20, 2023)

During the past two weeks the leadership of the "resistance axis" exploited the riots on the Temple Mount, Ramadan and World Jerusalem Dayto increase their threats against Israel.In Lebanon, Hezbollah and terrorist organizations' leadership threatened Israel during interviews and at meetings and rallies, some of them calling for the destruction of Israel. In addition to threats, during the Passover holiday Israel was attacked with rocket fire from south Lebanon, southern Syria and the Gaza Strip.
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Spotlight on Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (April 3-18, 2023)

During the past two weeks Palestinians carried out nine terrorist attacks in Judea, Samaria and inside Israeli. A mother and her two daughters and a tourist from Italy were killed. The Israeli security forces continued their counterterrorism activities,. The main arenas were Jericho, Nablus and Jenin.On the night of the Passover Seder and in the following days dozens of rockets were fired at Israeli territory, atypically from three different arenas. The pretext for the rocket fire was the riot at al-Aqsa mosque. Isma'il Haniyeh, head of Hamas' political bureau, paid a visit to Lebanon, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leader Ziyad al-Nakhalah paid a visit to Iraq.. The Palestinians scored a political achievement in the UN, and on May 15 the General Assembly will mark Nakba Day.
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Lebanon

Lebanon is a small country with a population of only about 4.1 million. Situated on the Mediterranean Sea, Lebanon borders on Israel in the south and Syria in the east and north. It gained its independence from France on November 22, 1943. Due to Lebanon’s varied ethnic composition, its history is rife with schisms, conflicts and civil wars based on sectarian allegiances. Since its independence, Lebanon has had a unique political system of ethnic distribution with a parliamentary democracy based on ethnic-sectarian-religious representation. The most important offices are divided among the various religious groups, in accordance with the national charter of 1943.


Lebanon’s social complexity, the weakness of its central government, and the social and economic gaps between the various ethnic groups led to the rise of many armed sectarian-political militias, some of which turned to terrorism. The most prominent Shiite terrorist organization in Lebanon is Hezbollah, which was founded in the summer of 1982 during the First Lebanon War. It is not only a terrorist organization which owes its allegiance to the Iranian regime, it has also been incorporated into the Lebanese political system.


Lebanon has traditionally served as an arena for foreign forces, both Middle Eastern and international. In the past, Syria’s intervention in Lebanon was most conspicuous. Today, Iran’s intervention is most conspicuous: it provides Hezbollah in Lebanon with weapons, ammunition, financing and military training. The border between Israel and Lebanon has undergone some tense periods and several confrontations where IDF forces entered the Lebanese territory. Since the Second Lebanon War (2006), the border between Israel and Lebanon has been relatively quiet, a situation exploited by Hezbollah to advance its military buildup and intensely intervene in the civil war in Syria, under Iranian direction.