OVERVIEW

Lebanese Hizballah flag

Lebanese Hizballah is a political, military, and terrorist organization with elements capable of conducting attacks against Israeli and US interests worldwide. The group is committed to opposing Israeli interests and driving US forces from the Middle East. Hizballah’s Islamic Jihad Organization (IJO)—a.k.a. the External Security Organization or Unit 910—is primarily responsible for overseas terrorism operations, including against US targets.

From October 2023 to November 2024, Hizballah conducted near-daily attacks on Israel in support of HAMAS. Israeli airstrikes in September and October 2024 killed several Hizballah leaders, including Secretary General Hasan Nasrallah, who had led the group since 1992, and his designated successor, Hashim Safi al-Din. In October 2024, Israel initiated ground operations against Hizballah in southern Lebanon. In November 2024, Hizballah and Israel agreed to a ceasefire that has largely resulted in a cessation of hostilities.

OPERATING AREAS
Hizballah operates throughout Lebanon, particularly in the Beqaa Valley, southern Beirut, and southern Lebanon. The group has also supported Iran-aligned militants in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen and has conducted attacks globally.

MEMBERS
Approximately 40,000 fighters

TACTICS AND TARGETS
Hizballah has statelike military capabilities, including air defense systems; antiship, antitank, and precision-guided missiles; rockets; and unmanned aircraft systems. However, these capabilities were degraded during the Israel-Hizballah conflict from 2023 to 2024. The fall of the Asad regime in 2024 probably diminished Iran’s ability to resupply the group through Syria. Hizballah remains skilled at asymmetric and conventional warfare tactics, including ambushes, assassinations, bombings, indirect-fire attacks, and kidnappings. Hizballah’s IJO has a history of caching explosives precursors and maintains clandestine infrastructure in various countries to support operations.

FOREIGN TERRORIST GROUP DESIGNATION
The US State Department designated Hizballah as a foreign terrorist organization in October 1997. More than 60 other countries and organizations, including the EU, the Arab League, and the Gulf Cooperation Council, have also designated Hizballah—either in part or in its entirety—as a terrorist organization.

KEY LEADERS

NOTABLE ATTACKS