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The Israeli Military's Key Relationship to Hezbollah Terror

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The Israeli Military's Key Relationship to Hezbollah Terror University of Central Florida STARS Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 2011 The Israeli Military's Key Relationship To Hezbollah Terror Mazen Kurdy University of Central Florida Part of the Political Science Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Kurdy, Mazen, "The Israeli Military's Key Relationship To Hezbollah Terror" (2011). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 1861. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/1861 THE ISRAELI MILITARY’S KEY RELATIONSHIP TO HEZBOLLAH TERROR by MAZEN KURDY B.S. University of Central Florida, 2002 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts in the Department of Political Science in the College of Sciences at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Summer Term 2011 ABSTRACT This research examines the establishment and expansion of Hezbollah. It uses a policy perspective in explaining the growth of this organization. Moreover, it focuses on Israel’s disproportionate use of force in Lebanon as a major cause behind the very existence of Hezbollah. The analysis of Israeli policy will be done by examining three separate conflicts as case studies. These events are: the 1982 (Peace for Galilee) invasion of Lebanon that helped to create Hezbollah, the 1996 (Operation Grapes of Wrath) Hezbollah-Israeli conflict which served to bolster Hezbollah in Lebanon, and finally the 2006 Hezbollah-Israeli war which solidified Hezbollah as a military force in the region. The first part of the study analyzes the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon to dismantle PLO bases and the resulting vacuum filled by Hezbollah. In an effort to eliminate Hezbollah, Israel again invaded Lebanon in 1996 allowing Hezbollah to expand its power based in Lebanon by providing a number of services including healthcare, financial services, and construction among others. In 2006, Israel again invaded Lebanon resulting in an increase in weapons shipments and funding to Hezbollah from Syria, Iran and a number of other countries, further increasing danger to Israel. These invasions have served to bolster Hezbollah in Lebanon. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the repercussions of Israeli military invasions in Lebanon. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................................................ v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .................................................................................................. vi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 1 Hezbollah Today ...................................................................................................................................... 1 Use of Force ............................................................................................................................................. 5 The Lebanese Dilemma ............................................................................................................................ 7 Past Works ............................................................................................................................................. 11 Process Of Examination ......................................................................................................................... 20 CHAPTER II: LEBANON ................................................................................................................................ 23 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 23 Unintended Consequences .................................................................................................................... 27 Operation “Peace for Galilee” ............................................................................................................... 29 Operation “Grapes of Wrath” ................................................................................................................ 32 The Shelling of Qana .............................................................................................................................. 34 The 2006 Hezbollah-Israeli War ............................................................................................................. 35 Hezbollah’s Arsenal ................................................................................................................................ 38 Remarks ................................................................................................................................................. 41 CHAPTER III: IRAN ....................................................................................................................................... 43 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 43 Iranian Ideology ..................................................................................................................................... 46 The Hawala System ................................................................................................................................ 52 U.S Fundraising Efforts ........................................................................................................................... 55 Hezbollah Goals ..................................................................................................................................... 57 Hezbollah: The New Strategy ................................................................................................................. 60 New Leadership ..................................................................................................................................... 63 Changing Alliances ................................................................................................................................. 64 Remarks ................................................................................................................................................. 66 iii CHAPTER IV: SYRIA ...................................................................................................................................... 67 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 67 Syrian Foreign Policy .............................................................................................................................. 71 The Next Hezbollah-Israeli Conflict? ...................................................................................................... 74 Weapons ................................................................................................................................................ 76 Syrian Regime and 2011 Protests .......................................................................................................... 77 Remarks ................................................................................................................................................. 81 CHAPTER V: FORCE IN A NEW MILIEU ........................................................................................................ 83 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 83 Backlash ................................................................................................................................................. 84 Strategic Mistakes .................................................................................................................................. 87 Time to Rethink Israeli Strategy ............................................................................................................. 90 Final Remarks ......................................................................................................................................... 91 APPENDIX: FIGURES .................................................................................................................................... 93 ENDNOTES................................................................................................................................................... 98 LIST OF REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 112 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Israeli pamphlet showing how Hezbollah is taking Lebanon into the abyss .................. 36 Figure 2 Political Map of Southwest Asia ................................................................................... 94 Figure 3 Topographical Map of Southwest Asia ......................................................................... 95 Figure 4 Map of Hezbollah Strongholds in Lebanon ................................................................... 96 Figure 5 Map of Hezbollah Area of Operations in Lebanon ......................................................
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