" (Kramer 1990) Additionally, Musawi stated that "I supported their glorious attacks against the U.S. And France," (ibid.). This more-than-tacit support of terrorist actions such as suicide bombings and other clandestine attacks on peacekeeping or other troops is more than enough to define the organization as one which supports terrorist actions and condones their use against innocent soldiers, peacekeeping troops, and civilians.
After this condoned attack, Hizbollah terror has not achieved such a marked event in one act of terrorism; however, they have supported terrorist actions that have grown in number each year since the Israeli pullout of Lebanon and which have, as stated earlier, been responsible for more American deaths than any other organization aside from al-Qaeda. Three members of Hizbollah are wanted by the FBI for the 1985 hijacking of TWA flight 847. Other attacks include the kidnapping of U.S. And other Western hostages in Lebanon and the attack of the Israeli Embassy in Argentina in 1992, along with the attack on the Israeli Cultural Center in Buenos Aires the following year (Dept. Of State 2004).
RESPONSE OF THE GOVERNMENT AND COUNTERACTION
Faced with such a severe threat by this organization, the international community has attempted various methods to deal with this threat. One primary method of responding has been the United Nations resolutions regarding the activities of Hizbollah; specifically, UN Resolution 1559, which called for the disarmament of all Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias in the country; this would have included Hizbollah (UN 2004). This resolution, which passed the general assembly, called for the peaceful disbanding of all militias and organizations which perpetrated military actions in the nation. As a sovereign nation, Lebanon does hold the power to regulate which organizations are permitted to operate under its aegis, and which organizations hold limited powers and ability to perpetuate themselves as a military or quasi-military organization. In regulating the actions of Hizbollah and the terrorist groups it supports, the Lebanese government could prevent many of the actions of the group. By refusing to do so and allowing Hizbollah to operate as an unrestricted "political organization," the government of Lebanon is at the very least tacitly condoning these actions and the continued terrorist actions of the organization.
The effectiveness of these legal measures taken by the international community in light of the Lebanese government's unwillingness to restrict the quasi-military and terrorist actions undertaken by Hizbollah has been limited at best. Without the potential for military enforcement or other sanctions to "encourage" compliance with such resolutions as 1559, there is no real enforcement mechanism to be pursued by the United Nations, the international community, or by individual nations with an interest in reducing or completely eliminating the terrorist actions of Hizbollah, such as the United States and Israel,...
Terrorist Organizations and the Media Subsequent to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, the world did change. Prior to the attacks, the term 'terrorism' was not as frequently used by the media world over, the way we are used to it now. We have to bear in mind that it is the media that brings the world together, it is the Internet at best that
Hezbollah has committed itself to the betterment of societal Lebanon not just in the context of Muslim families and organizations but all those who stand for an independent Lebanon. They have also provided a great deal of assistance when conflict has rendered regions without electricity or water (International Crisis Group, 2005). It was Hezbollah who provided not only medical supplies and food to Beirut during the 2006 conflict, but
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now