Recently in Hizballah Category

Human shields, partly for strategic purposes, and partly for propaganda purposes. "Israel: 1 in 10 houses in south Lebanon used for arms storage," from the Daily Star, February 2:

BEIRUT: Israeli Intelligence estimates that one in every 10 houses in south Lebanon serves as a missile storage facility or a launch pad for destructive devices against the Jewish state, Israel’s chief of military intelligence, Gen. Aviv Kochavi, warned Thursday at a security conference. "One in every 10 houses in south Lebanon is a storage facility for missiles or rockets or a launch pad for devices that are increasingly accurate and destructive,” AFP quoted Kochavi as saying.

South Lebanon is a major stronghold for Hezbollah, which in 2006 fought Israel in a 34-day conflict that ended following the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 that called for an end to hostiles between Lebanon and Israel.

The resolution also calls for the establishment of a zone free of armed personnel between the Blue Line and the Litani river.

"From Lebanon, Syria and of course from Iran, they can hit the heart of our cities, and the whole region of Tel Aviv is within their reach," Kochavi told those participating in the conference.

Hezbollah was not available for comments.

The Israeli general also warned his country faces growing threats from more conventional weapons, including "some 200,000 rockets and missiles," in the hands of Israel’s enemies, the agency reported.

This is not Israel’s first claim that south Lebanon is being used for attacks against it. During the 2006 July-August war between Lebanon and Israel, the Jewish state accused Hezbollah of using southern residential neighborhoods as launching pads for attacks against its army.

It has also accused the resistance group, which declared victory in the aftermath of the July war, of using southerners as human shields.

The U.N. has pressured Lebanon to disarm all non-state actors, particularly Hezbollah. In December U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon stressed the need for the implementation of U.N. resolutions that call for the disarmament of non-state actors, and said arms outside the jurisdiction of the state threaten the country’s stability.

It will take more than asking once. Hizballah is the only group from the Lebanese civil war that failed to disarm, in defiance of Resolution 1559.

Hezbollah has maintained that its arms are the only way to defend Lebanon against frequent Israeli aggression, citing the tripartite formula of the “army, the people, and the resistance” as the optimal defense strategy.

That's what the army is for -- defending Lebanon. Hizballah's arms are self-serving, also allowing them to defend themselves from the Lebanese army, if that became necessary.

Hizballah intends to ensure they serve their sentences in absentia as well, and there appears to be no political will in Lebanon to demand otherwise. One of those indicted has boasted that authorities know where he lives, but cannot arrest him. The track record so far calls into question whether "all reasonable steps" were really taken to bring them into custody.

"Hariri assassination suspects to be tried in absentia," from CNN, February 2:

(CNN) -- The special court investigating the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri announced Wednesday it will try the four accused killers in absentia.

The trial chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, headquartered in the Netherlands near The Hague, said it concluded that "all reasonable steps have been taken to secure the appearance of the accused and to notify them of the charges against them."

The efforts included multiple attempts by Lebanese authorities to find the four men at homes and workplaces, the chamber said. It also noted that the identities of the four men and their indictments received "massive publicity" in Lebanon, making it clear the men were being sought.

The chamber did not announce a date for the trial, but it will be at least four months away.

The United Nations-backed tribunal indicted the four men in June 2011 and made their identities public in July.

Hariri was killed in February 2005 when a bomb struck his motorcade in Beirut. The blast ripped apart his armored car and destroyed the motorcade, killing 21 other people and wounding 231.

All four suspects are charged with conspiracy aimed at committing a terrorist act.

The indictment says the alleged ringleader was Mustafa Amine Badreddine, while another man, Salim Jamil Ayyash, allegedly headed the "assassination team," responsible for physically carrying out the attack.

They are also charged with committing a terrorist act by means of an explosive device; two counts of intentional homicide with premeditation by using explosives; and attempted intentional homicide with premeditation by using explosives.

Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Assad Hassan Sabra were responsible for preparing a false claim of responsibility, the indictment says. They are charged with being accomplices to the same four counts.

Investigators used mobile phone data to place Ayyash and other members of the assassination team near locations where Hariri was in the days prior to his death, the indictment says. Similar data placed the men near points along the route of Hariri's convoy on the day of the bombing...

Probably. "Brotherhood would cancel Camp David Agreement, says Hezbollah official," by Haitham Dabbour for Al Masri Al Youm, January 30:

Tehran — Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood will eventually cancel the Camp David Agreement, despite the group’s announcement that it respects international agreements Egypt has signed, said Amin al-Sayed Ibrahim, head of Hezbollah’s political council.

Speaking to the “International Conference on Islamic Awakening and the Youths,” Ibrahim said that the Egyptian military, so as not to lose its clout, would never allow the Brotherhood to write the constitution or even form a constituent assembly to write the constitution.

Following their electoral victories in Parliament, Egypt's most organized political group has offered assurances that it would respect the 1979 peace treaty with Israel.

When asked early this month whether Washington believed that the Islamist party would uphold the treaty, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said that the party "has made commitments to us in this regard.”

That and 50 cents will get you... 50 cents. They may have noticed that the Ikhwan's message changes with its audience.

Ibrahim said that the current unrest in Syria is a conspiracy and not a revolution, as western media claims. The Egyptian delegation clashed with him over the remarks.

“The Syrians transfer arms to the Palestinian resistance,” he said.

Over 1,200 young people from Iran as well as 73 other countries are participating in the two-day conference, Iran’s Fars news agency reported on Monday.

Since Atris Hussein almost certainly believes that "there is not a catastrophe in the world that is not the handiwork of the Jews," this paranoid lunacy probably seems perfectly reasonable to him.

"Swede arrested in Thai terror probe claims he was set up by Mossad," from Fox News, January 19 (thanks to Kenneth):

BANGKOK -- A Swedish man of Lebanese descent accused of planning a terror attack in Bangkok says he is innocent and claims Israeli intelligence service Mossad set him up.

Atris Hussein, 47, who was charged Monday with violating a weapons control law after a large amount of fertilizer and ammonium nitrate -- which can be used to make a bomb -- was found in a property he rented, told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet he was, "100 percent innocent."

"A lot of the material police found in my storage facility had been placed there, most likely by the Israeli intelligence service Mossad," Hussein told the newspaper from Bangkok Remand Prison, where he is being held.

The father of four, who worked as a hairdresser in Gothenburg for 10 years before moving back to his native Lebanon, claims he was only involved in regular business activities involving the import and export of ice packs, paper and fans.

"The [ice packs] contain ammonia," Hussein said. "We've never traded in fertilizer. It must have been placed in our storage facility by someone, probably Mossad."

However, Thai police believe Hussein has links to the Iranian-backed, Lebanon-based militant group Hizbollah. They claim Hussein told officers that he and another man arrived in Thailand late last year with plans to stage an attack in Bangkok.

He allegedly told police that the bomb plot was called off when authorities caught wind of it.

Hussein, who used to run a business selling miniature trees, denies all the allegations and believes he was singled out because he is a Shiite Muslim and because of his political beliefs.

"I voted for the Social Democrats when I lived in Sweden," he said. "That may have made me look suspicious in the eyes of Mossad. They had an eye on me."

As one astute commenter observed the other day, surely this is about all that Israeli occupation of Thailand. An update on this story. "Thai police find large cache of bomb-making materials," from BBC News, January 16 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

Police in Thailand say they have found a large supply of materials for making bombs, following the detention of a suspect with alleged links to Hezbollah.

The suspect led police to a building containing more than 300 boxes of fertiliser and ammonium nitrate.

The raid follows the terror alert issued by the US and Israel warning citizens to avoid tourist sites.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said that the situation was under control.

The suspect, who was detained last week, is said to be a Lebanese man with a Swedish passport.

Police say the man has links to Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based Shia Islamist movement backed by Syria and Iran that the US considers to be a terrorist organisation.

A second suspect is also believed to have left Thailand.

A police spokesman told local media that the chemicals were going to be shipped out of Thailand for use in an unspecified third country.

The US embassy still has not lifted the warning it issued on Friday stating that Americans should "exercise caution when visiting public areas where large groups of Western tourists gather".

As noted here, it will take more than asking once to make that happen. "Hezbollah rejects call by U.N.'s Ban to disarm," by Dominic Evans for Reuters, January 14:

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah dismissed on Saturday a United Nations call for his militant anti-Israel movement to disarm, saying it was determined to maintain a military capacity to defend Lebanon.

That's what state armies are for. Lebanon has one. Hizballah's forces are ultimately for the sake of Hizballah, to protect it not only from outside intervention, but from challenges from within Lebanon, including government forces.

"I affirm today, firmly, decisively and with the greatest conviction ... the choice of armed resistance," Nasrallah said. "These weapons, along with the Lebanese people and army, are the only guarantee of Lebanon's protection."

Mocking a demand by visiting U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon that Hezbollah lay down its weapons, Nasrallah said he was happy that Hezbollah's military prowess was a cause for concern.

"Your concern, Secretary-General, reassures us and pleases us. What matters to us is that you are worried, and that America ... and Israel are worried with you," he said in a televised speech marking a Shi'ite holy day.

Hezbollah, which fought a devastating month-long war with Israel in 2006, has rejected a U.N. Security Council resolution that demands that it lay down its military arsenal, as all other Lebanese armed groups did at the end of the 1975-1990 civil war.

That's Resolution 1559. Not only did Hizballah defy the resolution, they are now better armed than the regular Lebanese army. What could go wrong?

Nasrallah, in hiding since 2006 for fear of assassination, says his movement has been re-arming since the 2006 conflict, when it fired hundreds of rockets across the border daily into northern Israel.

Ban, speaking in Beirut on Friday, said he was "deeply concerned about the military capacity of Hezbollah" and the lack of progress in disarmament. "All these arms outside of the authorized state authority, it's not acceptable," he declared....

This was a rather big deal in spite of the general lack of reporting in the American media: eleven countries issued travel warnings. An update on this story. "Thai police hunt second bomb plot suspect in Bangkok," by Kate Hodal for the Guardian, January 15 (thanks to Kenneth):

Police are hunting a terror suspect believed to be at large in Bangkok after the arrest of a man in an alleged bomb plot that has so far forced 11 foreign embassies to issue travel warnings to Thailand.

The national police chief, General Priewpan Damapong, said the suspected bomb plotters – two Lebanese men thought to be linked to pro-Iranian Hezbollah militants – called off the scheme after police caught wind of the plot and arrested one of them on Thursday.

Thai police – who are warning visitors in tourist-heavy areas such as Khao San Road to exercise caution – believe the suspect is in Bangkok but are also upping security searches in nearby provinces and other popular tourist destinations such as Pattaya and Phuket.

Thailand's metropolitan police spokesman Piya Ayutho said: "From intelligence reports, the attackers will use explosives, so the public is urged to be vigilant in risk areas, or in buildings visited by a lot of foreigners, and to particularly look for vehicles that have been left in certain areas for a long time."

The prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, said she had ordered the Thai army, police and security forces to remain vigilant and inform her of any developments, according to the Bangkok Post.

Sketches released late on Friday night by Thai police showed the suspect as a white Middle-Eastern man with short hair and stubble, around 1.8m (5ft 9in) tall. Anyone who believes they have seen the suspect is urged to report to the nearest police station or call 191 from within Thailand.

Priewpan said the man in custody, a Swedish national of Lebanese origin identified as Attiris Hussein, told police an attack had been planned but was called off when police learned about it. Hussein was detained by police on Thursday at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi international airport while trying to leave the country.

Authorities said charges had not been pressed against Hussein because of lack of evidence that he had committed an offence.

According to the Bangkok Post, Hussein told Thai officials that although he was a member of Hezbollah, he was not a member of the group's militant arm.

Thus underscoring what a flimsy distinction that is.

The alleged bomb plot, combined with Hussein's arrest, caused many foreign embassies, including those of the US, UK and Israel, to issue travel alerts for Thailand, warning that foreign terrorists could be planning to launch attacks in tourist areas in Bangkok in the near future. The US called the threat "Bangkok-specific" and "credible".

The warnings upset Thai authorities, who were withholding the news "since it could have an impact on tourism and cause panic among citizens", according to the defence minister, Yuthasak Sasiprapha.

Thai security agencies said they had known of the terrorist plot since December and had since been tracing a group of suspects thought to be involved.

With apologies as always to Dr. Seuss: Oh, the places you'll "misunderstand" Islam! "Thailand arrests Hezbollah suspect after terror tipoff," by Haroon Siddique for the Guardian, January 13:

Police in Thailand are questioning a suspected Hezbollah member, with the development coming as the US embassy warned American nationals of the threat of a terrorist attack in the country.

The suspected Hezbollah member, a Lebanese man, was arrested on Thursday after a tipoff from Israel about a potential attack in Bangkok, the Thai deputy prime minister, Chalerm Yoobamrung, said, adding that police had stepped up security.

Chalerm told Reuters: "A Lebanese suspect from the Hezbollah group has been taken into custody by Thai officials and police are investigating further.

"Following concern raised by the Israeli embassy about a possible attack by a group of Lebanese terrorists in Bangkok, Thai police officials have been co-ordinating with Israeli officials since before the new year."

He said the authorities had been following two Lebanese men, but did not say what had happened to the other, and also suggested that Thailand had no strong evidence linking the men to a planned attack.

"Technically, the two men have not committed any crimes under the Thai law, so we could only use the immigration law to keep this one suspect in custody," he said.

On Friday, the US embassy issued an emergency message warning that "foreign terrorists may be currently looking to conduct attacks against tourist areas in Bangkok in the near future. US citizens are urged to exercise caution when visiting public areas where large groups of western tourists gather in Bangkok".

Thailand's defence minister, Yuthasak Sasiprapha, said: "Thai officials had not intended to release the news at this time, since it could have an impact on tourism and cause panic among citizens."

He added that the US embassy was naturally concerned about its citizens, and said Thai and US intelligence officials were monitoring other individuals. The authorities were applying extra precautionary measures in areas popular with tourists as well as Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok, he added.

Yuthasak identified the Israeli embassy and synagogues as possible targets, while adding that intelligence reports said the planned attacks might be related to US activities against Iran....

Weird stuff happens on Friday the 13th, you know. Here, someone actually remembered U.N. Resolution 1559, after which Hizballah was the only group from the Lebanese civil war that failed to disarm. For that matter, it was the U.N. Secretary-General who remembered.

It will take more than asking once, however, to dismantle the army of Hizballah's pseudo-state within a state, which is better armed than the regular Lebanese army. "Disarm Hezbollah, U.N. chief tells Lebanon," by Alastair Lyon for Reuters, Friday the 13th (of January):

BEIRUT (Reuters) - United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon demanded Friday the disarmament of the anti-Israel Lebanese Hezbollah movement, which had said his visit to Lebanon was not welcome.

"I am deeply concerned about the military capacity of Hezbollah and ... the lack of progress in disarmament," he told a news conference after meeting Lebanese leaders.

"That is why we discussed this matter very seriously and I strongly encouraged President (Michel) Suleiman to initiate a convening of this national dialogue to address these issues...

"All these arms outside of the authorized state authority, it's not acceptable," Ban declared.

The secretary-general's trip made waves even before he arrived, with one Hezbollah leader saying he was not welcome, a stance criticized by Lebanese politicians opposed to the armed Shi'ite Islamist movement and its Syrian and Iranian patrons.

Hezbollah accepted an expansion of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in the south after its devastating 2006 war with Israel, but rejects a U.N. Security Council resolution that demands that it lay down its military arsenal, as all other Lebanese armed groups did after the 1975-90 civil war.

UNIFIL troops came under three attacks last year in which Italian and French soldiers were wounded. A rocket was launched into Israel in November and another rocket launching was attempted last month. No group claimed responsibility.

"There are no explicit fears that there is a new climate of hostility to the United Nations," a diplomatic source said. "But there is concern, which the secretary-general will emphasize, over the attacks (on UNIFIL) in May, July and December."

UNIFIL, now about 12,000 strong, is the third biggest U.N. peacekeeping operation and one of the oldest, beginning after an Israeli invasion against Palestinian guerrillas in 1978.

The Lebanese army has taken on a bigger role in the south since 2006, but given the tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, there is no sign of an exit strategy for the U.N. force there....

The jihad goes up in smoke, as Nasrallah gets richer and richer. The Taliban has long financed its activities through drugs as well. More on this story. "Report: Hizbullah Laundered Drug Money in US Banks," by Chana Ya'ar in Israel National News, December 29 (thanks to Pamela Geller):

The Hizbullah terrorist organization is in hot water over a scheme to launder hundreds of millions of dollars in multi-national drug trafficking revenues.

According to a report published by the World News Tribune, the Lebanon-based terrorist organization is using American banks and other financial institutions to process money earned from trafficking in South America.

The complaint filed by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Department of Justice, charges Hizbullah with using the money to buy used cars in the U.S. for transport to West Africa, where they are then sold, mostly in Benin....

However, some intelligence sources are questioning how much of the funds are actually being used for the day-to-day operations of the terrorist organization, and how much is going to line the pockets of its leader, Hassan Nasrallah....

"A fool and his money are soon partying" - Steven Wright

Hizballah is reportedly going broke, but Nasrallah is said to be livin' large. "Hezbollah's Nasrallah worth $250M?" by Doron Peskin for YNet News, December 29:

American intelligence officials estimate fortune of Shiite organization's leader, senior members totals some $2 billion, which are scattered in hundreds of bank accounts across the world

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah is worth some $250 million, a Saudi newspaper reported recently, quoting American intelligence officials.

According to the report, the fortune of Nasrallah's deputy, Sheikh Naim Qassem, and other senior organization members amounts to as much as $2 billion.

The anonymous intelligence sources believe the funds have been deposited in hundreds of bank accounts across the world, including in Europe, using fabricated or fake names.

Two Western sources are quoted as saying that the Hezbollah leaders from time to time channel millions of dollars from their bank accounts or their wives' bank accounts to senior members of the Revolutionary Guards in Iran, who are responsible for transferring money to the Shiite organization from the office of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

According to the report, Iranian parliament members are aware of this corruption, are unhappy with it but are avoiding discussing it.

Straw companies

A British security source who worked at the embassies in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon in the 1990s is quoted as saying that the West has figured out Hezbollah's money laundering method.

According to the source, the Shiite organization's common method is setting up straw companies in Arab or African countries, which sell cars or large amounts of goods.

See also: the recent identification of a ring of over 30 U.S. auto businesses implicated in funneling almost half a billion dollars to Hizballah.

The organizations also operate small cells of six to 10 people who specialize in stealing cellular phones, personal computers or credit cards, and open fake bank accounts using the victims' details.

According to the report, the Hezbollah members also specialize in stealing passports, which are used by the organization operatives to travel around the world for commerce purposes, among others.

By setting up companies, mainly in Eastern European countries and in Soviet republics in central Asia, Hezbollah provides all the financial needs of the organization members in Lebanon.

According to a recent report among many on the organization's financial situation, senior Iranian officials are furious over an internal report pointing to corruption among Hezbollah's highest ranks.

Another report says the Iranians were "amazed" to learn of the flamboyant life led by the organization members, mainly during their visits abroad.

Would you buy a used car from these jihadis? They're doing this in Tennessee and Tulsa, too. "Lansing used car dealership investigated in terror scheme," by Niraj Warikoo for the Detroit Free Press, December 28 (thanks to Kenneth):

A Lansing car dealership is named among 30 around the country in a federal investigation into an alleged $480 million money laundering scheme tied to Mideast terrorist group Hezbollah, federal prosecutors said.

According to a federal lawsuit filed in New York City, Oussama Salhab, the owner of Cybamar Swiss, a Redford Township transport company, "is a Hezbollah operative" who was part of an effort to funnel part of the proceeds from car sales to the Lebanese group.

The 66-page complaint lists a Lansing company called A&J Auto Sales Inc. as one of the dealers in Michigan - along with eight in and around Detroit.

However, the used car dealers are not accused in the federal complaint of being aware that they were part of a money laundering scheme and may have been unwitting participants.

It's unclear who owns A&J Auto Sales Inc. A business search turned up no results in Lansing, and the U.S. attorney's office referred to the complaint in lieu of comment.

The suit seeks the forfeiture of the assets of Cybamar.

In addition, federal officials sought the forfeiture of used car dealerships in Detroit, Dearborn Heights, Lansing and Redford Township that sold vehicles whose proceeds may have ended up going to Hezbollah.

Salhab bought vehicles from at least two of the dealerships, and his Redford company shipped many of the used cars overseas....

The complaint, filed Dec. 15, is the latest U.S. effort to target Hezbollah, a group based in Lebanon that the U.S. State Department classifies as a terrorist group and says has Iranian support. U.S. authorities say the group was behind bomb attacks against the U.S. Embassy and Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983 and 1984.

"We are putting a stranglehold on a major source of that funding by disrupting a vast and far-flung network that spanned three continents," said Preet Bharara, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.

The complaint says that banks and money exchanges in Lebanon tied to Hezbollah purchased cars from 30 car dealers - eight of them in metro Detroit - and sent them to west Africa. Cybamar in Redford was often used to ship the cars.

"Between 2008 and 2010, used cars valued collectively at over $1 billion were shipped from the United States to Benin (in Africa)," the complaint says. "Cybamar is ... frequently used by the car buyers."

Proceeds from car sales ended up in Lebanon, with some of the cash going to Hezbollah. Drug smuggling also was involved in some parts of the operation, the complaint said.

Salhab, who lives in Lebanon and the African country of Togo, tried to enter the U.S. in November 2009 through Metro Airport.

He was sent back after inspectors found images on his laptop of Hezbollah "Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah; audio of the Hezbollah national anthem; images of Hezbollah militants stomping on an Israeli flag," the lawsuit says.

This case is apparently connected to a larger investigation which found 30 auto businesses in the U.S. that laundered over $300 million in money to benefit Hizballah. Even in Tulsa. "Raid on Wilson auto dealership stuns landlord, neighbors," from The Tennessean, December 24:

A Wilson County car dealer accused of aiding Lebanon-based terrorist organization Hezbollah was born in that Middle Eastern country in 1969 and moved to Tennessee nine years ago, Davidson County court records show.

Khalil Aref Abdelkhalek’s landlord at Cedar Exports Auto Sales and neighboring businesspeople said they were shocked to hear that federal agents had raided the company — along with dozens of other dealerships across the country — as part of a civil money laundering and forfeiture lawsuit seeking nearly half a billion dollars from an alleged massive, international scheme to funnel money to Hezbollah.

Another "decent fellow":

“You could have knocked me over with a feather,” said Tony Moorby, owner of the Dealer Plaza complex where Cedar Exports and 13 other automotive dealers are located. “This chap has been great. He actually comes looking for us to pay his rent. He’s always been happy, courteous, smiling. He’s always been very gracious.

“But I’m sure the feds can’t do this kind of thing without all the consideration that’s due.”

Reached by telephone, Abdelkhalek, 42, referred comment to his lawyer, Nashville attorney Nader Baydoun, who did not return phone messages and emails seeking comment. In an interview with WSMV-TV, Abdelkhalek emphatically denied the government’s charges that he aided terrorists and suggested he may have unwittingly been caught up in the alleged scheme.

“As part of the scheme, funds were wired from Lebanon to the United States to buy used cars, which were then transported to West Africa,” states a news release announcing the civil charges brought last week by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. “Cash from the sale of the cars, along with proceeds of narcotics trafficking, were then funneled to Lebanon through (Hezbollah)-controlled money laundering channels.”...

Awwww. "Report: Hezbollah in dire financial straits," from YNet News, December 18:

While Hezbollah General Secretary Hassan Nasrallah appeared to be in high spirits recently during a rare public appearance in a suburb of Beirut, his organization is experiencing a severe financial crisis, French daily Le Figaro reported over the weekend.

According to the article, which was based on information obtained by French intelligence agencies, the civil uprising against President Bashar Assad in Syria has significantly reduced the flow of money to the Lebanese terror group.

Moreover, the report said, Iran has recently cut its financial aid to Hezbollah by 25% due in part to the international sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program.

Le Figaro said the financial crisis has led some Hezbollah terrorists to deal drugs in north Lebanon. Just last week US prosecutors indicted a Lebanese national who they said led a massive international drug smuggling ring with links to Hezbollah.

The US Treasury and the FBI have banned American organizations from donating to Hezbollah, which is designated under US law as a terrorist organization.

Last month Nasrallah claimed Hezbollah had unraveled a web of CIA informants and officers in Iran and Lebanon. According to Le Figaro's report, the network caused significant damage to the Shiite group.

Hezbollah's financial woes are also the result of corruption, the report said. According to Le Figaro, the terror group's investment manager had embezzled close to $1.6 billion.

The report said that during a speech in Beirut two weeks ago Nasrallah chastised the organization's female members for becoming, as he put it, too "bourgeois" and spending too much of the organization's money. Le Figaro said this was yet another indication of Hezbollah's dire financial situation.

The French daily claimed that the murder of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri in 2005 was planned by top Hezbollah commander Imad Mughniyeh, without Nasrallah's knowledge.

Even in Tulsa. "Terrorism investigation in Tulsa," from Fox23, December 16 (thanks to Kenneth):

A Tulsa auto business is among companies named in a federal complaint that accuses 30 U.S. car buyers of being in league with a money laundering operation that pumped more than $300 million into the financial system to benefit the militant group Hezbollah.

Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman Rusty Payne said that Ace Auto Leasing Inc. was among companies whose businesses were used to help launder drug money that helped finance Hezbollah.

Payne said, "Those moneys were laundered into some exchange houses in Lebanon and have been for a long time."

He added, "This is the perfect intersection of the nexus between drug trafficking and terrorism."

The companies would send cars to west Africa to be sold at a profit, with some money going back to the businesses to buy more cars to ship.

Payne said profits from drug trafficking were laundered into the operation as well, helping fund the militant group. Ace Auto Leasing has recieved more than $20 million from the Lebanon exchange houses.

Payne said, "You have used car dealerships across the country receiving transfers from shady exchange houses that are Hezbollah backed and are working with Hezbollah and the Lebonese Canadian bank."

He added, "When you see a used car lot with 10-50 cars on it, do you think $20 million sent to them is normal?"

Dr. John Swails, director for the Center for Israel and Middle East Studies said this has been boiling under the surface for some time.

He said, "The big surprise is that we've caught so many or they have bungled their attempts."

Dr. Swails added, "I think Hezbollah knew it was happening because they started capturing CIA agents so they may have seen it coming."

While this is not a reason to panic, Dr. Swails and DEA officials say problems like this are not going away.

Payne said, "There's only one more group that has killed more Americans and that's Al-Qaeda. Hezbollah is number two."

Dr. Swails said, "The people who hate the United States are out there and they're coming relentlessly so we have to accept the fact… We have to be on our guard."

The investigation continues. No official charges have been filed.

A clue to the attraction Leftists feel for Islamic supremacists? "Lebanese Drug Lord Indicted, Linked to Hizballah Funding," from IPT News, December 13:

A Lebanese drug lord, with connections to Hizballah, has been indicted on charges of moving over 100 tons of Columbian cocaine to the Zetas drug cartel and into the United States. Propublica.org's Sebastian Rotella states it is a "politically explosive case" that the terrorist organization funds itself through drug sales to America, which is backed up by previous government press releases.

"Ayman Joumaa is accused of facilitating the shipments of huge amounts of cocaine for the United States while laundering the proceeds all over the globe," said DEA Administrator Leonhart in the Justice Department's press release. "According to information from sources, his alleged drug and money laundering activities facilitated numerous global drug trafficking organizations, including the criminal activities of the Los Zetas Mexican drug cartel. DEA and our partners will continue to expose and dismantle these worldwide networks," he added....

Hizballah is already a stronger armed force than the Lebanese army, and the only group from the Lebanese civil war that failed to disarm, in direct violation of the quickly forgotten UN Resolution 1559. "Hezbollah's Nasrallah vows to arm more heavily," by Rita Daou for Agence France-Presse, December 6:

Lebanon's Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, in his first public appearance in more than three years, warned those banking on change in the Arab world that he would arm his fighters more heavily than ever.

Marking the Shiite commemoration of Ashura, Nasrallah spoke in person to a frenzied crowd of tens of thousands in his stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs for only a few minutes, joking: "Don't go away, I'll be right back on that screen" before being whisked away by nervous-looking bodyguards.

In a speech broadcast on large screens shortly after his departure, Nasrallah vowed his Iranian-backed group would continue to arm in the face of possible "regional change," hinting at neighbouring [Syria].

"A message to all those who are conspiring against the resistance and banking on change (in the Arab world)... We will never let go of our arms," said the black-clad Shiite leader.

"We are tens of thousands of trained fighters, who are all ready to die," he said.

"Day after day, the resistance gains more fighters, trains better fighters and arms even more heavily.

"Every weapon that rusts is replaced."....

The good news here is that for a moment, Lebanon has remembered its identity separate from being the host to Hizballah's parasitic pseudo-state, and has agreed to contribute its share of funding to the UN Special Tribunal investigating the Hariri assassination, for which four Hizballah members have been indicted.

Hizballah tried to create a diversion from the indictments by triggering the collapse of the government in February, but has apparently decided against throwing another tantrum for the moment. There is also the ongoing instability affecting one of Hizballah's sponsors, Syria, that may have led the group to choose its battles more deliberately for now: indeed, there have been rumors that Hizballah may try to take Beirut if Assad's regime collapses.

"Hezbollah seeks to reassure Lebanon over probe," by Bassem Mroue for the Associated Press, December 1:

BEIRUT (AP) — The leader of Hezbollah sought to reassure Lebanon on Thursday that he has no interest in stirring up trouble over an international investigation that has targeted members of his Shiite militant group.

Lebanon is deeply divided over a U.N.-backed tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of Rafik Hariri, a former prime minister and billionaire statesman. There were concerns the country could be facing a political crisis after Lebanon agreed to fund the court this week, against the wishes of Hezbollah, the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon.

But on Thursday, Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said he will put the country's interests ahead of everything else.

Except for collapsing the government at will and staging the occasional "coup drill."

"Although we reject the legitimacy and funding and cooperation with this tribunal, we will not cause problems in the country and we will put national interests above any other consideration," Nasrallah said in a televised appearance.

Are you reassured yet?

The investigation into Hariri's death — and the degree to which the Lebanese authorities should cooperate with it — has become one of the most divisive issues in Lebanese politics in recent years.

Hezbollah strongly denies any link to the crime and says the court is a Western tool to strike at the anti-Israel group.

Hezbollah and its allies, which hold a majority in the Cabinet, were expected to block the funding for the court during a vote this week.

But on Wednesday, Prime Minister Najib Mikati said he already had secured Lebanon's $36 million share of funding. Mikati did not say how he secured the money and Nasrallah also said he did not know the details.

Hizballah has for some time been a parasitic pseudo-state within Lebanon, complete with its own armed forces, and has slowly been working to devour its host. An attempt to take Beirut would be a rather logical progression of events, unfortunately. Would Hizballah face any resistance from the Lebanese armed forces?

"If Assad falls, Hezbollah will take Beirut," from the Jerusalem Post, November 22:

Hezbollah may launch a military offensive to take over the Lebanese capital of Beirut if Syrian President Bashar Assad is forced out of power, Dubai-based Arabic-language news website Al Arabiya reported Tuesday according to a "source close to Hezbollah."

According to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, despite an air of confidence in broadcasts from Hezbollah's Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, officials behind closed doors have begun to worry about the potential fallout that may result following the collapse of the Syrian regime, especially given the alliance between Hezbollah, Syria and Iran.

"The moment that Hezbollah feels that the fall of the Assad regime is imminent - either as a result of the popular movement or of foreign military intervention - it will move quickly to take control of East and West Beirut," the sources told Al Arabiya.

The source added that Hezbollah would receive support from the Free Patriotic Movement - a faction with eleven ministers in the Lebanese government - led by former Lebanese army commander Michel Aoun.

The source said that Hezbollah would seek to fortify itself in the nation's capital in order to defend itself against the threat posed by Israel, which may feel emboldened enough following the fall of Assad to launch an offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Hezbollah, a close ally of both Syria and Iran, has denounced any potential foreign intervention inside Syria. Nasrallah warned earlier this month in a televised speech to commemorate "Martyr's Day" that any attack on Syria or Iran would lead to an all-out regional war.

Israel has said that Iran has heavily armed Hezbollah by smuggling weapons through Syria. In August, as protests raged across Syria, Turkish officials seized Iranian arms that were transferred through Syria and reportedly en route to the militant Islamist group in Lebanon.

Why was the CIA lazy? Perhaps because no premium is put on gather information on Hizballah and Iran in this administration -- the name of the game is outreach. "Exclusive: CIA Spies Caught, Fear Execution in Middle East," by Matthew Cole and Brian Ross for ABC, November 21 (thanks to all who sent this in):

In a significant failure for the United States in the Mideast, more than a dozen spies working for the CIA in Iran and Lebanon have been caught and the U.S. government fears they will be or have been executed, according to four current and former U.S. officials with connections to the intelligence community.

The spies were paid informants recruited by the CIA for two distinct espionage rings targeting Iran and the Beirut-based Hezbollah organization, considered by the U.S. to be a terror group backed by Iran....

In Beirut, two Hezbollah double agents pretended to go to work for the CIA. Hezbollah then learned of the restaurant where multiple CIA officers were meeting with several agents, according to the four current and former officials briefed on the case. The CIA used the codeword "PIZZA" when discussing where to meet with the agents, according to U.S. officials. Two former officials describe the location as a Beirut Pizza Hut. A current US official denied that CIA officers met their agents at Pizza Hut.

From there, Hezbollah's internal security arm identified at least a dozen informants, and the identities of several CIA case officers.

Hezbollah then began to "roll up" much of the CIA's network against the terror group, the officials said.

One former senior intelligence official told ABC News that CIA officers ignored warnings that the operation could be compromised by using the same location for meetings with multiple assets.

"We were lazy and the CIA is now flying blind against Hezbollah," the former official said....

At about the same time that Hezbollah was identifying the CIA network in Lebanon, Iranian intelligence agents discovered a secret internet communication method used by CIA-paid assets in Iran.

The CIA has yet to determine precisely how many of its assets were compromised in Iran, but the number could be in the dozens, according to one current and one former U.S. intelligence official.

The exposure of the two spy networks was first announced in widely ignored televised statements by Iranian and Hezbollah leaders. U.S. officials tell ABC News that much of what was broadcast was, in fact, true....

That's one way of putting it, whether he meant Ahmadinejad or Khamenei. Nasrallah also claims that the Hizballah-dominated Lebanese government's withholding of funds to the UN Special Tribunal for the investigation of the Hariri assassination was in retaliation for the US' withholding of funds to UNESCO over its inclusion of an aspirational Palestinian entity that does not fit the criteria for statehood.

Nasrallah is demonstrating one of the cardinal rules of modern jihad: anything can be called retaliation for anything, and someone, somewhere, will buy into the displacement of blame.

"Hezbollah leader blasts US over Iran, Syria, Hariri," from Agence France-Presse, November 11:

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah accused the United States on Friday of ramping up pressure on Iran and Syria as a way to deflect attention from what he called Washington's "searing defeat" in Iraq.

"The United States needs to put up a smoke screen ... and has launched a campaign of intimidation that talks about attacks against Iran and Syria so as to deflect attention from its searing defeat in Iraq," said the Shiite leader, whose militant group is backed by Iran and Syria.

He was speaking via video link at a rally in his Beirut stronghold honouring Hezbollah martyrs.

"Whoever dares to launch war against Iran will be met with doubly that force," he warned. "Iran is strong; Iran is powerful and has a leader unique to the whole world."

He added that any military action against Iran or Syria would engulf the entire region.

His speech came amid renewed pressure on Iran by the international community over its nuclear programme and against Syria over its brutal crackdown against an eight-month pro-democracy revolt.

Nasrallah said both countries had been against the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, and Washington was now keen to make them pay for that as the roughly 31,000 US soldiers remaining in Iraq prepare to leave the country before the end of the year.

He also accused the United States of using double standards when it comes to the UN-backed court probing the 2005 assassination of Lebanon's ex-premier, Rafiq Hariri.

Nasrallah said he saw no reason why Lebanon should be expected to contribute its share of the tribunal's funding given Washington's decision to cut off funds to the United Nations cultural agency UNESCO after members voted to admit Palestine as a full member.

"Isn't the funding of UNESCO an international obligation for the US?" he said. "Why can it shirk its obligation and not Lebanon?"

"If Lebanon doesn't fund this unconstitutional and illegal court, Feltman comes along and threatens sanctions," he added, referring to Jeffrey Feltman, the US assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs.

Lebanon's government is dominated by Hezbollah and its allies, which are insisting that the country cease all cooperation with the Netherlands-based Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), set up in the wake of Hariri's murder.

The STL has charged four Hezbollah operatives in connection with the assassination.

The tribunal indicted four Hizballah members for Hariri's death, and said they may be linked to other assassinations. This development is another indication that the parasitic pseudostate of Hizballah continues to succeed in devouring its host. "US warns Lebanon over Hariri court funding," from Agence France-Presse, November 5:

A top US official on Saturday warned that ties with Lebanon would suffer if Beirut fails to pay its share of funding to a UN-backed court probing ex-premier Rafiq Hariri's murder.

"If Lebanon is unable to produce its share of the funding for the Special Tribunal, we're going to have to take some pretty tough decisions, and I think you're going to see some consequences in terms of the US-Lebanese bilateral relationship," Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman said in an interview with Al-Arabiya television in Washington.

"I’d expect the same thing in terms of some other countries as well."

Lebanon is responsible for meeting 49 percent of the costs of the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), which has charged four Hezbollah members in the 2005 assassination of billionaire ex-premier Hariri.

But the Hezbollah-dominated government has yet to pay its share, estimated at $35 million (25.2 million euros) for 2011, as international pressure mounts on Prime Minister Najib Mikati to uphold his commitment to the STL.

"Mr Mikati has said publicly ... that he is committed to meeting Lebanon’s obligations to the international community," said Feltman.

"One of those obligations is payment of the Lebanese contributions to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon."

Mikati in recent weeks has received a series of notifications from the court on the overdue funds.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, whose Shiite militant party is blacklisted as a terrorist group by Washington, has openly opposed Lebanon paying its annual share to the Netherlands-based STL.

Nasrallah has dismissed the court as a US-Israeli conspiracy against his Iranian-backed party, warning that no member of Hezbollah would ever be found or arrested.

In January, Hezbollah toppled Lebanon's Western-backed government, led by Hariri's son Saad, in a feud over the STL, ushering in telecommunications tycoon Mikati to replace him.

In 2010, the Hariri government transferred funds to the STL without cabinet approval.

Lebanon is dying, its sovereignty now symbolic. It is the name on the mailbox, but Syria and Iran run the house, via Hizballah. More on this story. "Lebanon denies report it knows location of Hariri killers," from the Jerusalem Post, August 20:

Lebanese state prosecutor Saeed Mirza on Saturday denied reports made by one of the Hezbollah members indicted for the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri that the government in Beirut knows his location but is unable to arrest him, Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star reported.

"The Lebanese authorities know where I live, and if they wanted to arrest me they would have done it a long time ago. Simply, they cannot," said one of the of the accused assassins of the former Lebanese prime minister.

One of the Hezbollah members accused accused of killing Hariri gave an exclusive interview to Time Magazine on Thursday in which he blamed Israel for the assassination, which took place in Beirut on February 15, 2005. He said that he would never turn himself in, nor would Hezbollah ever let him or his comrades go to trial.

In the interview, the militant, who refused to allow his name to be published despite proving his identity to the Time Magazine reporter, accused the Mossad of assassinating Hariri and forging evidence against him and his organization. He also said that the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) had no teeth and that even though the Lebanese government knew where he lived and worked they would not be able to arrest him because Hezbollah would not let them.

The STL released a detailed indictment on August 17 in the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri. Four suspects, Mustafa Amine Badreddine, a senior Hezbollah figure and brother-in-law of slain Hezbollah commander Imad Moughniyeh, Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Assad Hassan Sabra were named and their methods of operation were detailed in the report....

The tribunal now also says three other assassinations may be connected.

Putting on full display the puppet state they have become, in the hands of Hizballah and its Syrian and Iranian backers. "Lebanon prevents UN condemnation of terror attack," by Yitzhak Benhorin for YNet News, August 20:

WASHINGTON – Murder of Israelis permitted? Lebanon, which is currently a member of the United Nations Security Council, prevented early Saturday a condemnation of the recent terror offensive in southern Israel.

Israel’s UN Ambassador Ron Prosor expressed his disappointment with Beirut’s move, noting that Lebanon is itself “a state controlled by a terrorist organization.”

The UN envoy said that the latest fiasco proved that the UN has become “blind and deaf” when it comes to condemning terror attacks against Israeli citizens.

"Deaf, dumb, and blind," if you will.

“The Security Council’s silence is deafening,” Prosor said.

Lebanon demands 'balance'

A draft proposal for a presidential statement was distributed to the Security Council’s 15 members Thursday. The United States, Europe and India vigorously supported a harsh UN denunciation of the murderous attack in Israel, yet the Arab representative in the Council, Lebanon, announced Friday that it will endorse such censure only if it is “balanced” with a condemnation of Israel’s retaliatory strikes in the Gaza Strip.

Europe, the US and Israel rejected the Lebanese equation, in essence burying the condemnation and demonstrating yet again that the UN is unable to address some of the most vital issues on its agenda.

Referring to the UN failure to condemn the terror offensive, Ambassador Prosor said that “we are dealing with a blatantly clear terror attack against innocent Israeli civilians.”

“The UN secretary general condemned it, the Americans condemned it, the European Union condemned it, yet the bottom line is that the Security Council again failed as a body,” he said. “Every time an issue pertains to Israel, we see deafening silence. They become blind and deaf.”

And you knew this was coming:

'Israel commits war crimes'

While the UN refrained from condemning Thursday’s string of terror attacks in Israel, which left eight people dead, Palestinian spokesmen were quick to issue scathing condemnations of Israel’s retaliatory operations in the Gaza Strip.

On Friday, Senior Fatah official Nabil Shaath accused Israel of committing war crimes in the Strip and seeking to escalate regional tensions....

Who fired the first shot on Thursday, Ernie and Bert?

One of the judges ordered Lebanon to hand over information about the other attacks. With the current Lebanese government dominated by Hizballah, good luck with that. An update on this story. "Lebanon tribunal orders probe of 3 more attacks," from the Jerusalem Post, August 19:

AMSTERDAM - The UN-backed Lebanon tribunal said on Friday it pursue investigations into three bomb attacks which it believes are connected to a separate bombing which killed Lebanese politician Rafik al-Hariri in 2005.

Daniel Fransen, the pre-trial judge for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), ordered the Lebanese authorities to hand over information about the attacks and assassination attempts on three other politicians -- Marwan Hamadeh, George Hawi, and Elias al-Murr.

Hamadeh is a former telecoms minister who survived an assassination attempt in 2004 while al-Murr, a former deputy prime minister and former defence minister, was wounded in a bombing in 2005.

Hawi, a former Communist Party chief and critic of Syria, was killed by a bomb in his car in Beirut in 2005.

"The (STL) prosecutor had presented prima facie evidence that each of the three cases are connected (to the Hariri killing), and are thus within the tribunal's jurisdiction," the court said in a statement.

The tribunal issued sealed arrest warrants for four members of the Shi'ite Muslim group Hezbollah in June over the assassination of Hariri, a billionaire Sunni Muslim politician and one time prime minister.

However, none of the four has been detained by Lebanese authorities and Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and Syria, says they will never be arrested.

The developments in this case from the U.N. increasingly have an air of "Hi, we're with the United Nations. Remember when we indicted these people for homicide? Anybody?"

Hizballah's parasitic pseudo-state has succeeded for the moment in partially devouring its host. In a Hizballah-dominated government, the political will to challenge a band of thugs who staged "coup drills" when they felt threatened over the pending indictments has been hard to come by. Both Lebanon and the U.N. have passed up chances to challenge Hizballah (or hold it to existing resolutions) before the group became better armed than the Lebanese Army, and entrenched in the Lebanese government. Doing so is certainly not going to get any easier anytime soon.

An update on this story. "Hariri tribunal publishes indictment to try Hezbollah members," by Jan Hennop for Middle East Online, August 17 (thanks to Twostellas):

The UN-backed court probing the 2005 murder of Lebanon's former prime minister Rafiq Hariri said Wednesday it had enough evidence to try four Hezbollah members, as it published the full indictment.

"The pre-trial judge has ordered that his decision confirming the indictment related to the 14 February 2005 attack, as well as the indictment itself, be made public," the Special Tribunal for Lebanon said.

The judge found "the prosecution has presented sufficient evidence on a prima facie basis to proceed to trial," the Hague-based tribunal added in a statement, welcomed by the court's chief prosecutor Daniel A. Bellemare.

Judge Daniel Fransen last month ordered confidentiality around the names and charges against Salim Ayyash, 47, Mustafa Badreddine, 50, Hussein Anaissi, 37 and Assad Sabra, 34, be partially dropped.

Ayyash and Badreddine face charges of "committing a terrorist act by means of an explosive device" and homicide, while Anaissi and Sabra faced charges of conspiring to commit the same acts in the massive bomb blast that killed Hariri and 22 others.

Tribunal prosecutor Bellemare welcomed the tribunal's order to unseal the indictment, saying he will push ahead with preparations for the trial.

"This order will finally inform the public and the victims about the facts alleged in the indictment regarding the commission of the crime that led to charging the four accused," Bellemare said in a separate statement.

More than 20,000 pages of evidence were filed with the indictment which Bellemare's office claimed "corroborates the following factual allegations and charges included in the indictment."

The prosecutor accused Badreddine of "being the overall controller of the attack," said a summary of the indictment.

"Ayyash coordinated the assassination team that was responsible for the physical perpetration of the attack," the summary added.

"Anaissi and Sabra, in addition to being conspirators, prepared and delivered a false claim of responsibility video, which sought to blame the wrong people," it said.

Most recently, Hizballah blames Israel, naturally.

It claimed an assassination team "consisting of Ayyash and others positioned themselves in several locations where they were able to track and observe Hariri's convoy," on February 14, 2005.

It also gives a timeline of Hariri's movements up until 12:55 local time, when a "male suicide bomber detonated a large quantity of explosives concealed in the cargo area of a... van, killing Hariri and 21 other victims and injuring 231."

Apart from Ayyash's role, the prosecution alleged Anaissi and Sabra called two international news agencies shortly after the attack and told them they could find a video tape placed in a Beirut square, with the false information.

The tribunal itself stressed the prosecution's findings "does not imply that the individuals are guilty, but merely establishes that there is enough material for them to be tried."

"The prosecution will have to prove at trial that the accused are guilty 'beyond reasonable doubt," the tribunal said.

Vintage Hizballah on display in two areas: challenging state power with near impunity, and positioning military assets in civilian areas to take as many unwitting human shields with them as possible if they are ever challenged. "'Hezbollah preventing police from probing Beirut blast'," from the Jerusalem Post, July 30 (thanks to Weasel Zippers):

Hezbollah security forces prevented Lebanese police from investigating the scene of an explosion Friday overnight which rocked Hezbollah's headquarters in a south Beirut suburb, DPA reported Saturday.

The blast, which took place inside an apartment on the tenth floor of a building in the the Roueiss neighborhood, killed at least one person and injured another, DPA said.

Immediately after the explosion, the area was blocked off by Hezbollah security forces who. [sic] A Lebanese security source told DPA that Hezbollah forces fired into the air to disperse curious crowds who gathered at the site.

The circumstances behind the blast were unclear, but DPA cited some Lebanese newspapers as saying that a small bomb or hand grenade could have been the cause of the blast.

Lebanese website Lebanon Files also reported that Samir Kuntar, a terrorist previously jailed in Israel, was injured in the explosion. The report could not be confirmed, however it is believed that several Hezbollah members live in the Roueiss neighborhood.

Interpol has already issued a "red notice" for their arrests. Now that the four Hizballah men have been officially named, Lebanon has until August 11 to inform the U.N. tribunal of the action they will take. In a Hizballah-dominated government, the scope of possible responses is considerable.

They may well attempt to buy time indefinitely by asking to carry out their own "investigation." "Lebanon: UN names Hezbollah men in Rafik Hariri case," from BBC News, July 29:

A UN-backed tribunal has released the names of the four indicted suspects in the assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

They are all connected with the Lebanese Shia movement, Hezbollah.

The wanted men are Mustafa Amine Badreddine, a senior Hezbollah figure, Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Assad Hassan Sabra.

Hezbollah is a key part of the Lebanese government and has said it will not allow the men to be arrested.

Their identities had already been leaked, as had their association with Hezbollah.

The tribunal said it was releasing the information in order to facilitate the arrest of the men.

Pre-trial judge Daniel Fransen ordered the lifting of confidentiality on the names, aliases, biographical information, photographs and charges against the individuals named in the indictment, the tribunal said in a statement.

Following the issue of the arrest warrants, the Lebanese authorities have until 11 August to inform the tribunal of the action they will take in response....

It has been labeled as a "terrorist" attack. Hizballah is benefiting nicely from the status quo in Lebanon in its relationship with the U.N. and the Lebanese Army, and though it is the only group named in the report below, it would profit the least from rocking the boat in this way. "Attack on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon condemned," from BBC News, July 27:

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has condemned a roadside bomb attack that wounded five French peacekeepers in Sidon, southern Lebanon, on Tuesday.

It was the second such attack on the UN force in two months.

Mr Ban said he was "deeply disturbed".

It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack but tensions are rising in Lebanon over a UN-backed inquiry into the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

A statement from the UN force in Lebanon (Unifil) said that an explosion targeted a peacekeepers' convoy along the main road leading to the capital at about 18:00 local time.

"Unifil forensic experts are at the scene and Unifil is working in co-ordination with the Lebanese armed forces to determine the circumstances of the incident," it said.

The UN Security Council added its condemnation of the bombing, which it called "a terrorist attack", as well as any attempts to threaten the security and stability of Lebanon. [...]

There are growing concerns over fallout from the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, which the UN supports. It has indicted members of Hezbollah, but the group refuses to hand over the suspects.

Interpol has issued a "red notice" for their arrest, but not surprisingly, there has not been the political will in a Hizballah-dominated government to do anything about it.

The tribunal is expected to publish more details of the indictments when a 30-day deadline expires at the end of the month.

US Attorney Preet Bharara announced at an afternoon news conference, "Today we unseal two indictments that provide fresh evidence of what many of us have been seeing for some time, the growing nexus between drug trafficking and terrorism."

Indeed, we have been seeing it for some time. In my 2002 book Islam Unveiled I discussed how the Taliban's involvement in drug trafficking was consistent with the group's theology. It is in line with the sharp distinction in the Qur'an and Islamic tradition between believers and unbelievers: since the buyers were non-Muslims, they had no problem selling the product. And Osama bin Laden himself was once called "one of the world's largest heroin dealers."

"U.S. Attorney Bharara Announces Intl. Narco-Terror Bust," by Peter Thorne for WPIX, July 26:

NEW YORK (PIX11) — Federal prosecutors in New York announced Tuesday the results of a globe undercover sting operation that took down suspected money men for Hezbollah and the Taliban busted in a narco-terror takedown.

Four men are now accused of plotting to sell heroin on the streets of the United States -- and to buy weapons for the Taliban allied with Al-Qaeda and Hezbollah, designated a foreign terrorist organization by the US State Department.

US Attorney Preet Bharara announced at an afternoon news conference, "Today we unseal two indictments that provide fresh evidence of what many of us have been seeing for some time, the growing nexus between drug trafficking and terrorism."

Two defendants were arrested in Romania and were identified as Cetin Aksu and Siavosh Henareh. No photos of the men were immediately available. Two other defendants were detained in the Maldives, Bachar Wehbe and Gul Alizai. They've been flown to New York for trial.

US Attorney Preet Bharara said, "Today's indictments relate to two different dangerous narcotics networks. But their aspirations did not end with the sale of Heroin. Both allegedly were also prepared to traffic in terror not just drugs."

Prosecutors say the weapons deal involved: 48 Stinger surface-to-air missiles, 5,000 AK-47 rifles, 1000 M4 rifles and 1000 Glock handguns. Tonight one defendant's attorney told me his client -- who is now accused of being a Hezbollah henchman -- is from Lebanon. He is now in custody in New York, and today entered a not guilty plea....

An update on this story from 2007, which called Daqduq "one of Hezbollah's top special operations commanders, [and] an expert in the use of roadside bombs," who admitted working with Iran's al-Qods special operations unit. He is believed to have played a key role in a brazen ambush on U.S. soldiers who thought they were going to discuss security issues with Shi'ite leaders.

Obviously, this bears watching. "Hezbollah commander could be transferred in days," from the Associated Press, July 21:

A Hezbollah commander held in Baghdad by the US military and considered a threat to American troops could be transferred soon to Iraqi authorities, and US security officials worry he could escape or even be freed.

Ali Mussa Daqduq worked with Iranian agents to train Shiite militias who targeted American soldiers in Iraq, according to the US military. He was captured in 2007 and US officials have linked him to a brazen 2007 raid in which four American soldiers were abducted and killed in the Iraqi holy city of Karbala.

That is, at least until it can put them to use against Israel. Hizballah, now a stronger armed force in Lebanon than the Lebanese Army, is the only group from the Lebanese civil war that failed to disarm. This activity yet again renders U.N. Resolution 1559, a 2004 document demanding the disarmament of all Lebanese militia groups including Hizballah, not worth the paper it was printed on until it is fully enforced.

The reward for Beirut's longstanding inaction toward the parallel, parasitic pseudo-state growing within it is that Lebanon has become a hostage state in a Syrian-Iranian proxy jihad via Hizballah, and the hostage quite often seems to have Stockholm Syndrome.

"Syria steps up Hezbollah armament," from YNet News, July 16:

Damascus has accelerated its supply of weapons to Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, Ynet learned Saturday.

According to intelligence sources in the West and the Middle East, Syria's arms shipments to the Shiite organization have remained steady despite the unrest sweeping across the country, and they include advanced ballistic missiles.

Syria is said to be employing the help of experts from Iran and North Korea to press ahead with its development of sophisticated missiles at a secret site, believed to be built into Jabal Taqsis, a mountain near the opposition stronghold of Hama.

The missile program is allegedly run by the Scientific Studies and Research Centre in Damascus, an organization that is already on the United States' sanctions list.

With financial and political support from Iran, Damascus has also stepped up its military assistance to Hezbollah.

Sources close to Hezbollah said that the flow of weapons entering the Bekaa Valley from Syria had accelerated since March, when protests erupted against the Assad regime.

The scale of arms shipments is said to be so great that Hezbollah "doesn’t know where to put it all." Another source said that the shipments were simply contingency measures and that "We can send it all back when things calm down in Syria."

Latest weapon deliveries to the Lebanon-based militant group include, according to The Australian, advanced Scud D surface-to-surface missiles, which can carry a one-ton warhead and have a range of 700km – placing all of Israel, Jordan and a large part of Turkey within Hezbollah's range and therefore at risk.

Hezbollah has also reportedly been given M600 surface-to-surface missiles, which have a range of 250km and are based on Iranian technology.

According to The Times, M600 missiles are considered "strategic weapons" and "This is the first time that a terror organization has obtained a missile of this type."

Scud missiles are based on North Korean expertise.

Dear Leader must have liked the floral basket.

"North Korea has transitioned from selling full missile systems to licensed production and assembly of missiles (in third countries)," said Mark Fitzpatrick, director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies non-proliferation and disarmament program.

Israeli military intelligence also confirmed that Hezbollah has been engaged in a serious arms build-up....

What remains to be seen is whether there is any political will to hold the four accountable in Lebanon, which is now under a Hizballah-dominated government. Left unchallenged for far too long, Hizballah's parallel state has become a sort of suicide vest wrapped around Lebanon, and an instrument of blackmail whereby Hizballah can threaten to blow the country apart. An update on this story. "'Interpol issues 'red notice' for Hariri suspects'," from the Jerusalem Post, July 9:

Interpol issued "red notices" for the four suspects named by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri in 2005, Lebanon's Daily Star reported on Saturday.

The notices, which are not international arrest warrants, are a request that the wanted person be arrested with a view to extradition. The four Lebanese men who were named in an STL indictment last week are wanted for trial in the Netherlands, where the STL sits.

The UN-backed tribunal handed indictments and arrest warrants to Lebanon just over a week ago, that officials said accused Hezbollah members of involvement in the assassination of Hariri.

The long-awaited move was hailed as a "historic moment" by Rafik Hariri's son, Sa'ad, but poses an immediate challenge to the new government of Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, whose cabinet is dominated by Hezbollah allies.

Prosecutor Saeed Mirza gave no details of the indictments. Lebanese officials said four warrants were issued for Hezbollah members including senior leader Mustafa Badreddine, who was jailed in Kuwait in 1983 over a series of bombings and is a brother-in-law of slain Hezbollah commander Imad Moughniyeh....

We have noted Hizballah activity in Mexico many times here, and Pamela Geller wrote about it in the Washington Times in August 2010. Now law enforcement is finally admitting it.

"LulzSec doc drop: Arizona Officials Say Hezbollah Operating in Mexico," from Doug Ross, July 7 (thanks to Jack):

A document drop by LulzSec has revealed an ominous bulletin from police officials in Tucson, Arizona. In short, law enforcement is advised to be on the lookout for Hezbollah terrorists operating in the traditional smuggling corridors on our (wide-open) southern border with Mexico.

Presence in the Tri-Border Region Made up of Puerto Iguazu, Argentina; Foz do Iguazu, Brazil; and Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, the area in South America known as the Tri-Border area (TBA), has long been considered a safe haven for organized crime and Islamic terrorist networks, including Hezbollah. As of 2002, the population of the TBA reached 630,000 of which approximately 25,000 were Arab or of Arab descent. Illegal activity in the region includes counterfeiting, money laundering, and the easy acquisition of false documents. The recent arrest of Moussa Ali Hamdan [arrested in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, for conspiring to provide material support to Hezbollah] confirms Hezbollah’s continued presence in the region.

Presence in Mexico
Based on a study done by Georgetown University, the number of immigrants from Lebanon and Syria living in Mexico exceeds 200,000. Along with Iran, Syria is one of Hezbollah’s strongest financial and political supporters, and Lebanon is its country of origin.

In July of this year, Mexican authorities arrested Jameel Nasr in Tijuana, Baja California. Nasr was alleged to be tasked with establishing the Hezbollah network in Mexico and throughout South America.

In April of last year, the arrest of Jamal Yousef – in New York City - exposed a weapons cache of 100 M-16 assault rifles, 100 AR-15 rifles, 2,500 hand grenades, C4 explosives and antitank munitions. According to Yousef, the weapons, which were being stored in Mexico, had been stolen from Iraq with the help of his cousin who was a member of Hezbollah.

With the arrest of Jameel Nasr and Jamal Yousef, obvious concerns have arisen concerning Hezbollah’s presence in Mexico and possible ties to Mexican drug trafficking organizations (DTO’s) operating along the U.S. – Mexico border. The potential partnership bares alarming implications due to Hezbollah’s long established capabilities, specifically their expertise in the making of vehicle borne improvised explosive devises (VBIED’s).

Recent incidents involving the use of VBIED’s in Mexico mark a significant change in tactics employed by DTO’s and conjures images expected to be seen in the Middle East. While no connection has been made, Hezbollah’s extensive use of VBIED’s raises strong suspicion concerning a possible relation to Mexico’s DTO’s.

Read it all. And remember, a border fence, or even any decent border control, would be "racist."

Also in this report is the interesting note that Faouzi Mohamad Ayoub "was recruited by Hizballah’s Canadian branch." Needless to say, Hizballah shouldn't have a "Canadian branch." "Feds unseal indictment against ex-Dearborn resident in alleged terror plot," from the Detroit Free Press, July 6 (thanks to Kenneth):

Federal prosecutors in Detroit have unsealed a two-year-old criminal indictment against a former Dearborn man who, they say, tried to use a phony U.S. passport to sneak into Israel in 2000 to carry out a bombing for Hizballah.

The indictment, handed down in August 2009, said Faouzi Mohamad Ayoub, 44, who also goes by the name Fawzi Ayoub, used a passport in the name of Frank Mariano Boschi to try to get into Israel. The U.S. State Department has designated Hizballah as a Lebanese terrorist group.

The indictment was unsealed Friday, two days after the FBI added the man’s name and photo to its most wanted terrorist list. There are 31 others on the list.

It’s unclear why Ayoub was added to the list so long after the 2000 incident, whether he was arrested in the episode and when and how long he lived in Dearborn.

There was no immediate comment from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Detroit or the Detroit FBI field office, which is handling the case.

The Israeli government reported that its forces arrested Ayoub in June 2002 during a raid in the West Bank city of Hebron. The Israelis said he was a senior Hizballah fighter who took part in Hizballah attacks on civilians. Ayoub denied the charges.

The government said he was born in Lebanon, immigrated to Canada and was recruited by Hizballah’s Canadian branch.

Canadian news outlets reported after his arrest that he had entered Canada in 1988 and became a citizen in the 1990s. They said he and relatives lived in Toronto.

In 2004, the Israeli government swapped Ayoub and 435 other prisoners in exchange with Hizballah for an Israeli businessman and the bodies of three solders killed in October 2000 while on patrol in northern Israel. Ayoub’s wife and son greeted him at the airport in Beirut, the news reports said.

Ayoub’s current whereabouts are unknown.

Unfortunately, for as long as Hizballah's country-within-a-country with its own standing army has gone unchallenged in Lebanon and allowed to become ever more entrenched in society and government, there may indeed not be the political will in Lebanon to hold the group accountable.

An update on this story. "Hezbollah leader rejects Hariri court indictments," by Dominic Evans for Reuters, July 2 (thanks to all who sent this in):

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Saturday that authorities would never arrest members of the Shi'ite militant group indicted by a U.N.-backed tribunal seeking the killers of statesman Rafik al-Hariri.

In his first comments since the indictments were handed to the state prosecutor on Thursday, Nasrallah dismissed the accusations as unfounded and a failed attempt to sow strife and bring down Lebanon's new Hezbollah-backed government.

He cares about not bringing down this government, unlike the one Hizballah toppled in February to create a diversion from the Hariri case. At that time, Hizballah even staged "coup drills" aimed at intimidating any potential challengers.

The tribunal has not named the suspects but Lebanese officials said they included Mustafa Badreddine, a senior member of the movement and brother-in-law of slain Hezbollah commander Imad Moughniyeh, and three other members of the group.

"They cannot find them or arrest them in 30 days or 60 days, or in a year, two years, 30 years or 300 years," Nasrallah said. Under the court proceedings, Lebanese officials have 30 days to make arrests after receiving indictments.

And Hizballah maintains Israel did it anyway.

Hezbollah, both a Shi'ite Muslim political movement and guerrilla army, denies any role in the huge explosion on the Beirut seafront which killed Hariri, a Sunni Muslim who served several terms as prime minister, and 22 others in February 2005....

He apparently forgot to blame the US. Perhaps that's forthcoming in the next round of denials. More on this story. "Nasrallah implies Israel behind Hariri hit," by Oren Kessler for the Jerusalem Post, July 2:

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Saturday defended the four members of the terrorist organization charged with the murder of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri, praising the men as “brothers” – and implying that Israel’s hand was behind the UN tribunal that issued last week’s indictments.

Speaking from an undisclosed location, Nasrallah addressed the allegations for the first time since the UN court announced the indictments on Thursday.

Charges that Hezbollah was behind the 2005 killing of the prominent Sunni leader have already inflamed sectarian tensions in the small and fractious country.

Nasrallah lamented that charges had been brought against “brothers who have made history in resisting the Zionist occupation.”

“We mentioned the possibility of having Israel involved in the murder, and the fact that [Israeli] agents were present at the murder scene one day before the murder,” he said, according to a translation provided by the website Now Lebanon.

“No one in the STL [Special Tribunal for Lebanon] even asked the Israelis anything. This is normal – why? Because the tribunal, since its formation, had a precise goal, and no one was allowed to talk to the Israelis...

“Instead of investigating the Israelis, [the STL] gathered information from them. Imagine that Israel – instead of being under investigation – has become a source of information and [the tribunal] is cooperating with it.”...

Hizballah knew this was coming, and knew it would be damaging. They have been maneuvering all along to shield themselves, trying to create a diversion by triggering the collapse of the Lebanese government in February. Now entrenched in the new government dominated by the group and its allies, they can resort to a wide array of diversions and provocations to attempt again to avoid being held accountable.

"Lebanon receives Hariri killing indictments," by Miriam Karouny for Reuters, June 30:

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A U.N.-backed tribunal seeking the killers of statesman Rafik al-Hariri handed indictments and arrest warrants to Lebanon on Thursday that officials said accused members of the militant Hezbollah group of involvement.

The long-awaited move was hailed as a "historic moment" by Hariri's son, opposition leader Saad al-Hariri, but poses an immediate challenge to the new government of Najib Mikati whose cabinet is dominated by Hezbollah allies.

Prosecutor Saeed Mirza gave no details of the indictments. Lebanese officials said four warrants were issued for Hezbollah members including senior leader Mustafa Badreddine, who was jailed in Kuwait over a series of bombings in 1983 and is a brother-in-law of slain Hezbollah commander Imad Moughniyeh.

The assassination on February 14, 2005 plunged Lebanon into a series of political crises, killings and bombings which led to sectarian clashes in May 2008, dragging the country back to the brink of civil war.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on nations to support the tribunal, a hybrid international and Lebanese court established under Chapter Seven of the U.N. charter, granting the U.N. wide powers to address violations.

But a Hezbollah television station said the indictments showed that the tribunal was politicized.

Analysts said Mikati, whose government has yet to win a confidence vote in parliament, now faces irreconcilable demands from Hariri's domestic and international allies -- who want Lebanon to comply with the court -- and the majority of his cabinet who reject any cooperation with it.

Lebanese analyst Oussama Safa said that refusal to comply would lead to Lebanon's isolation. "Now the government of Mikati has to decide what it is going to do. If it does not cooperate it risks putting Lebanon in trouble," he said.

The United States welcomed the delivery of the indictments, saying it marked "an important step toward justice and ending impunity for political assassinations in Lebanon."

State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Lebanon's government should now hand them over to the special prosecutor.

"We're looking for it to take action," he said.

The other three suspects were named by Lebanese officials as Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hassan Issa and Assad Sabra. It was not clear how many belonged to Hezbollah or what positions they held.

Hezbollah, both a Shi'ite Muslim political movement and guerrilla army, denies any role in the huge explosion on the Beirut seafront which killed Hariri and 22 others.

There have been fears in Lebanon that indictments of Hezbollah members over the assassination of the prominent Sunni Muslim leader, who was prime minister for several terms between 1992 and 2004, could raise sectarian tensions between factions still struggling with the legacy of its 1975-90 civil war.

Mikati urged Lebanese to be "reasonable and far-sighted" to ensure that "those who want to target the country and push us toward strife miss their chance."

Hezbollah has vowed to thwart attempts to detain any of its members and -- as the country's pre-eminent military force --could easily prevent security forces making any arrests even if the government approved them. It wants Lebanon to end cooperation with the tribunal, withdraw Lebanese judges and halt contributions to its funding....

Since Hizballah is a proxy for Iran's jihad against Israel, any talk along these lines recalls the takeover of the embassy in Tehran. Hizballah would like that. They'd like that a whole lot. And for any potential future conflict, Hizballah has publicly marked the embassy as a target. "Hezbollah: US Embassy in Lebanon spies for Israel," from the Associated Press, June 24:

BEIRUT (AP) — The leader of Lebanon's Shiite militant group Hezbollah has accused the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon of spying for Israel.

Sheik Hassan Nasrallah spoke Friday in a televised speech. He said his group has information that the U.S. Embassy is "a spy and recruitment center for Israel."

He says the group has discovered several cases in which the CIA recruited Lebanese agents to gather information about Hezbollah for Israel.

Hezbollah and Israel are sworn enemies.

But only Hizballah exists to destroy its "sworn enemy."

Last year, there was also a measure that attempted to cut aid to Lebanon's army over concerns about collusion with Hizballah. As Hizballah's tentacles lengthen their reach, the response from the Washington must evolve as well to ensure, in Rep. Berman's words, that "no US taxpayer funds benefit the terrorist organization Hezbollah or any party that allies itself with Hezbollah." "US congressman introduces bill to cut off Lebanon aid," from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, June 19 (thanks to Weasel Zippers):

LOS ANGELES - A Jewish congressman has joined with three Lebanese-American colleagues to sponsor a bill to cut off American aid to Lebanon, as long as Hezbollah remains part of the ruling coalition government.

The unusual alliance, cutting across ethnic and political lines, was initiated by Democratic Rep. Howard Berman of Los Angeles and includes Reps. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Charles Boustany (R-La.) and Nick Rahall (D-W. Va.).

Designated as the Hezbollah Anti-Terrorism Act, or HATA, the bill seeks legislation “to make certain that no US taxpayer funds benefit the terrorist organization Hezbollah or any party that allies itself with Hezbollah,” Berman said in a phone interview Friday from his Washington office.

Berman drafted and introduced HATA a few days after the formation of a new Lebanese government “forged by Hezbollah and led by a Hezbollah-designated prime minister [Najib Mikati],” Berman said.

The California legislator, formerly the chairman and now the ranking democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, termed his alliance with the three Lebanese-American congressmen as “very unusual.”

He attributed the support by his three colleagues to their deep concern over Hezbollah’s threat to freedom and democracy in their ancestral homeland, overriding any differences with Berman on Israeli-Palestinian issues.

Issa commented that “Hezbollah is a terrorist group and a cancer on Lebanon. This bill surgically targets this cancer.”

Currently, Lebanon annually receives $200 million in aid from the United States, of which $105 million goes for security assistance. The new bill specifically provides for continued support for humanitarian, educational and democratic institutions in Lebanon.

Berman said that the White House and State Department “knew generally” about the contents of HATA, before he introduced the bill.