this is an opinion article written by Bryan E. Leib & Maria Maalouf  — the opinions are not necessarily views of khazen.org

The combination of Ebrahim Raisi (Raeesi) taking power in Iran and the weakness coming from President Joe Biden could lead to a major conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, a conflict in which many innocent lives would be lost on both sides. Hezbollah has a lot to be celebrating these days. Inside Lebanon, it is celebrating its victory in further entrenching itself in all facets of Lebanon’s government with the recent appointment of Najib Mikati as the next Prime Minister of Lebanon(link is external), supported by Hezbollah. This Iranian-backed “political party” which in fact is a US designated FTO (foreign terrorist organization) is also celebrating the presidency of a hardliner in Iran. During Raisi’s inauguration, the deputy secretary-general of Hezbollah shared the front row with other senior officials from US designated FTO’s such as Hamas and Palestinian Jihad. With Raisi taking power, we predict that Hezbollah will continue its strong-arm tactics inside Lebanon, on Israel’s northern border, and look to further expand its grip on power throughout the Middle East because that is what proxies do – they listen to their boss. Let us be clear – Hezbollah doesn’t make any significant moves without securing Iran’s blessing. They do what they are told because if they don’t, they know that Tehran will cut off the flow of money and weapons.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has a vision for the Middle East, and he executes this vision through militant proxies. The sad reality is that the Islamic Republic of Iran seeks to push the entire region into further chaos and into a protracted war with Israel. All of Iran’s terrorist proxies share in Tehran’s vision to eradicate Israel and create chaos in the region. The silent sympathy of President Michel Aoun is a testimony to the inability of any Lebanese political force to stop this dangerous Hezbollah-Iran nexus that has stripped the country of its sovereignty and plunged it into a death spiral. Meanwhile, the Biden administration and the French government have called on Israel and Hezbollah to exercise restraint and refrain from military escalation. These words have not been backed up by tangible actions. Immediately after these calls for restraint, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah declared that the current dynamic between his militant organization and Israel is a throwback to 2006, which witnessed the last serious military confrontation between the two. In addition, Nasrallah’s deputy, Naiim Qassem, met with the Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Hossein Salami, and reiterated that, “the grounds now are ready for the collapse of the Zionist entity. If any error is committed on its [Israel’s] part, the new war will be launched, and it will be the death war for it.”

Hezbollah is signaling to its patron in Tehran that they are ready, willing and able to launch an attack on Israel. This should come as no surprise to anyone because with Raisi taking power, Tehran’s support for Hezbollah might be increasing. After all, Raisi a hardliner who is loyal to Khamenei. While these reckless and dangerous statements are threatening to drive Lebanon into a state of chaos, the possibility of a political-economic recovery has been diminishing as well, as the country is pushed further into Iran’s orbit. Hezbollah is funded by Tehran, and the Islamic Republic spends anywhere from $500 million to $1 billion annually on its apparatus and operations. This is a significant increase from the $100 million it used to receive from Iran in the 1980s. In addition, Hezbollah has been capable of freezing the economy and society in Lebanon by challenging the government and ultimately deciding who the next prime minister should be.

While it was able to elect representatives to the parliament in 2000 and appoint cabinet members from its ranks since 2006, it has introduced a very unfamiliar vocabulary in Lebanese politics, labeling itself a “resistance force” which shows its penchant to embroil Lebanon into fighting against Israel and other forces. Hezbollah is an armed political group unlike any other Lebanese political faction, always displaying its military might. It is a menace to the Lebanese armed forces which has to cope with a rival army that is willing to make war and peace decisions regardless of Lebanon’s national interest. Furthermore, it has built a parallel economy and aims to subjugate the whole Lebanese economy to its activities. It is running private credit institutions such as “Al Qard Al Hassan,” and “Sharekat Waad,” [The Good Loan and The Promise Company]. Additionally, its executive committee on October 25, 2000 founded the conglomerate “Jihad Al Binna,” [The Jihad Construction], to invest in agriculture, industries, and the services economies. That firm created partnerships with many municipalities especially those who have Shiite majorities to control their economies and communities.

Lastly, Hezbollah has been denying its culpability in the explosion at the Beirut Port on August 4, 2020(link is external). It accused the investigative committee of being biased. As expected, it will seek to throw doubt on the legitimacy of any international effort to reveal the truth, because the port was used as a depot for its stockpile of ammonium nitrate, a chemical for making explosives. The great Arab-Lebanese singer Fayrouz recently pleaded for the resurrection of Lebanon on the first anniversary of the explosion in the Port of Beirut. Sadly, no one outside of Lebanon heard this message. Lebanon desperately needs another noble cry for help and perhaps President Biden should break his silence on the Islamic Republic and its malign efforts to sow division in the region.

We believe the time is now for President Biden to start acting like the leader he claims to be by publicly stating his commitment to eradicate the Iranian-backed Hezbollah from the region. He should turn words into action by enacting and enforcing tough sanctions on Tehran & Hezbollah. If Biden hardens his policy against the Islamic Republic, its militant proxies will be the first to feel the pain and that’s a good thing. Terrorists should always feel the full wrath of the United States of America. Maria Maalouf is a Lebanese journalist, broadcaster, publisher and writer. She holds an MA in Political Sociology. Bryan E. Leib is the Executive Director of the Iranian Americans for Liberty and he is a former Republican candidate for US Congress. The opinions expresses by the authors are not necessarily the views of Iran International