Hezbollah Lebanon; A 'Terrorist Organization' Among 'Arab Brothers'

Just a week after the Gulf Cooperation Council labeled Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, the Arab League has also reached a consensus to include Hezbollah Lebanon in its list of terrorist organizations. Among the 22 member countries of the Arab League, only Lebanon and Iraq abstained from voting similarly, citing a right to reservation. Undoubtedly, such actions by these two Arab organizations and institutions represent a significant reputational blow to Hezbollah Lebanon in the Arab world and also to the Islamic Republic, its main supporter. It is clear that with Hezbollah now listed as a terrorist organization, any membership, propaganda, and financial activities of institutions and companies affiliated with Hezbollah Lebanon across the Arab world will be considered violations of anti-terrorism laws. If a large number of Arab countries enforce their anti-terrorism laws against Hezbollah, they could also put pressure on Lebanon, Hezbollah's home country. For instance, it is conceivable that numerous Arab banks could pressure Lebanese banks to cease cooperation with Hezbollah or face exclusion from banking partnerships. The prospect that financial institutions and companies affiliated with Hezbollah could face difficulties across the Arab world, and even in Lebanon, indicates the pressure that this resolution will impose on Hezbollah. A larger catastrophe for Hezbollah is on the way. Until a week ago, when the Gulf Cooperation Council and now the Arab League included Hezbollah in the list of terrorist organizations, this organization was already listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada, Australia, and the European Union. Subsequently, Saudi Arabia was the first Arab country to list Hezbollah as a terrorist organization. Saudi Arabia's success in aligning the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab League to label Hezbollah as a terrorist organization occurred after Hezbollah played a significant role in the Syrian civil war in favor of Bashar al-Assad's government. Gradually, the rift that emerged between supporters and opponents of Bashar al-Assad in Syria spread to each of the Arab countries. Arab countries opposing Assad also became opponents of Hezbollah, just as Arab countries opposing the Islamic Republic also oppose Iran's military arm (i.e., Hezbollah). A review of news from Arab countries is sufficient to understand that periodically, some Arab countries, especially in the Gulf region, announce the discovery and neutralization of terrorist cells linked to Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Just in January, Bahrain and Kuwait claimed to have discovered and neutralized terrorist cells linked to the IRGC and Hezbollah, while the Yemeni government also claimed a close connection between Hezbollah and the Houthis. Thus, Hezbollah is now under pressure from Arab countries even more than from Israeli propaganda. It is not an exaggeration to say that Hezbollah now faces a front as broad as the Arab countries in addition to the Israeli front. If Hezbollah's resistance against Israel provided it with legitimacy, its confrontation with 'Arab brothers' will undoubtedly pose challenges, as now it is not just the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the European Union, but 'Arab brothers' who have classified Hezbollah alongside ISIS and Al-Qaeda as a terrorist organization. Imagine if ISIS claimed to fight against Israel. Could an organization deemed a terrorist by Arab countries and institutions justify its existence merely by fighting Israel? This exact assumption now applies to Hezbollah. This situation is even more challenging for Hezbollah than for ISIS when we consider that Arab countries have labeled Hezbollah not only as a terrorist organization but also as a mercenary for the Islamic Republic. A review of the noisy propaganda machinery of Arab media shows that they consider Hezbollah an extension of the Islamic Republic and the Islamic Republic an extension of the Safavid state, which seeks to exert its hegemony over the region through the spread of Shia Islam. Arab countries do not forget that the Safavid state, by adopting Shia Islam as Iran's official religion, ended nine hundred years of Sunni rule in Iran. They view the Islamic Republic and Hezbollah Lebanon as a historical extension of the Safavid rule, seeking to expand Iranian hegemony through Shia Islam. In this context, Hezbollah's claims of resistance against Israel will hold no value for Arab countries, especially now that it has been labeled as a terrorist organization. To understand the media campaign that will be launched against Hezbollah, it is enough to pay attention to Hassan Nasrallah's statements, which describe Saudi Arabia as aligned with Israel as a factor of 'sedition' in Lebanon, stating: 'Saudi Arabia's plan in the region is one of sedition, and this is also Israel's plan.' In evaluating this sedition, Nasrallah is so suspicious that he has said: 'Some Lebanese groups hope that the decisive storm operation (Saudi military operations against the Houthis) will be repeated in Lebanon as well.' Nevertheless, the destruction that has already befallen Hezbollah does not stop here. A larger catastrophe is on the way: the classification of Hezbollah as a terrorist organization by the largest Islamic institution, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Given Saudi Arabia's influence in the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Arab League, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, it is predictable that after this action, Riyadh's next step will be to bring the classification of Hezbollah as a terrorist organization to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and secure a vote from this institution as well. The thought that Hezbollah Lebanon could be classified as a terrorist organization across the Islamic world, with 57 members, alongside organizations like Al-Qaeda and ISIS, would indeed be a significant blow for Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic. This exact behavioral pattern was employed by Riyadh in condemning Bashar al-Assad's regime and labeling it as criminal in the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the General Assembly, successfully achieving its desired results.